It’s a big move, and probably a smart one:
In a blog post this weekend, the company’s Chief Content Officer, Ted Sarandos, explained that “a number of high profile” movies will leave the service next month as a result of Netflix’s decision not to renew the partnership. Films affected include ‘Hunger Games: Catching Fire’, ‘World War Z’ and ‘Transformers: Age of Extinction’, which viewers have until the end of September to watch.
“While many of these movies are popular, they are also widely available on cable and other subscription platforms at the same time as they are on Netflix and subject to the same drawn out licensing periods. Through our original films and some innovative licensing arrangements with the movie studios, we are aiming to build a better movie experience for you,” Sarandos wrote.
Saving money on blockbusters you can see anywhere in favor of spending more money on exclusives you can’t makes a lot of business sense — especially if Netflix can maintain decent quality.
It also fits in with their CEO’s stated goal of “becoming HBO before HBO becomes us.”
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