Weekly Rewind
The past and future of Plex: Over at Fast Company, I wrote an in-depth profile of Plex, whose server software lets you stream media files from one device–usually a PC–to many others. While Plex is a fine tool for ripped DVDs and downloaded video files, packaged media and downloads are on the decline, and the company’s business, while profitable, isn’t future proof.
Plex’s new plan involves hosting more of its own content–starting with news, and possibly expanding to video podcasts and children’s programming–and deep-linking into existing streaming services such as Netflix. The media server element isn’t going away, but Plex’s hope is to expand into a broader hub for all the content you consume.
Netflix’s comedy moves: The standup comedy selection on Netflix has long been a staple of our cord-cutting consumption, so I’m excited to see that Netflix is investing even more in this area. The company recently opened its wallet for new standup specials from Chris Rock, Dave Chapelle, Trevor Noah, and Jerry Seinfeld (along with Seinfeld’s excellent variety series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee), and this week announced two upcoming specials from Louis C.K. The first one, titled 2017, is coming in April.
As Netflix Chief Creative Officer Ted Sarandos said in January, Netflix used to get most of its comedy second-hand from other sources. The turn toward exclusives from big names is helping to drive new subsciptions–though it’s great news for Netflix’s existing comedy fans as well.
More Catch-Up
|
