In the new age of technology, traditional forms of viewing entertainment like cable television are becoming less and less popular, with new options taking their place. Online options have seen the biggest rise in popularity. According to research firm SNL Kagan, the number of U.S. households that have broadband Internet but don’t have a television subscription rose to over 10.5 million in 2014, which is 16 percent more than in 2012. In addition, as of Dec. 3, 2014, 40 percent of households register to a subscription video-on-demand service, such as Netflix or Amazon Prime Instant Video, up from 35 percent in 2013, according to Time Magazine. With the increasing acclaim and universality in online streaming sources, there is an increasing amount of advantages and disadvantages to the different streaming sites.
Netflix
Pros:
By far the most popular with more than 60 million subscribers, Netflix clearly has caught the attention of many. At $7.99 per month for the most basic package in the United States, Netflix has the largest variety of programs, including both TV series and movies.
Netflix divides these numerous options into categories from things as simple as “Recently added” to genres like “Crime TV Shows” to specific categories like “Dark Tearjerkers Featuring a Strong Female Lead.” Based off of categories that you have viewed, Netflix makes suggestions for other series and movies that are “top picks for you.” Netflix also has the largest variety of original series and some, including “Orange is the New Black” and “House of Cards”, have won major awards.
“One reason I keep Netflix is for its many original shows,” said Junior Michael Kotzan. For easier viewing on mobile devices, Netflix has a free app in the Apple and Android stores for easy streaming.
Cons:
Although it has the biggest content selection, one major disadvantage of Netflix is that Netflix buys its content in bulk, meaning that you can’t watch the episodes from the current season of a television series and you typically have to wait longer for movies to be released. Also, for reality TV enthusiasts, Netflix has a limited reality section in comparison to other streaming sites.
Hulu Plus
Pros:
One major difference between Hulu Plus and Netflix is that the former of the two provides you the option to view episodes of a series less than 24 hours after they air, allowing you to keep up with current seasons of television shows. Hulu Plus also gives you suggestions on other series you may enjoy, based off of past programs you have watched. Like Netflix, Hulu Plus has an app in both the Itunes and the Android store for more accessible viewing on mobile devices.
Cons:
One of the biggest criticisms of Hulu is that when you pay for the base price of $7.99 per month, you still have commercials varying from 30 to 120 seconds in length throughout the show.
“Commercials make me less likely to want to stream on Hulu,” revealed senior Mady Novak. In addition, Hulu plus is not all-inclusive, requiring you to pay extra for certain networks’ programs, like Showtime.
Amazon Prime
Pros:
The most unique characteristics of Amazon Prime in comparison with the other streaming services is that along with the online streaming function, Amazon Prime allows for free two-day shipping on select Amazon products. Along with Hulu Plus, Amazon Prime permits the viewer to stream episodes of series less than 24 hours after they air. Amazon Prime is commercial free, allowing for fewer interruptions while streaming. Amazon Prime also has seen a recent growth in its amount of original content, with nine original series currently on Amazon, according to studies.amazon.com.
Cons:
Amazon Prime gives no suggested content based off what you have watched in the past, which could make it a little more difficult to find new content. Also, there is no app available for easy viewing of Amazon Prime programs on mobile devices.
Overall, because you have to pay extra for commercial free streaming and certain networks, Hulu Plus is not worth the price. Netflix’s biggest advantage is its vast amount of content but Amazon Prime seems like the best deal to me. Although it may be lacking in the vast majority of content compared to Netflix, it is growing everyday in both networks and original content, with the extra perk of free two-day shipping.
