Netflix and Amazon to add DreamWorks films and more to streaming services
(CBS) - Netflix and Amazon both reached deals with major studios to get access to more movies and TV shows for online streaming, reports Wall Street Journal.
On Monday, movie streaming service Netflix, which has come under fire for splitting its business into two, says in 2013, it will add films and programming from DreamWorks Animation SKG. That means, you can stream "Kung Fu Panda," "Shrek" and "Madagascar."
According to the Associated Press, Netflix shares went up $2.42 (1.8 percent) to $131.78 on Monday morning, while DreamWorks shares went up five cents to $18.79.
Netflix, which has dominated the movie-streaming industry for several years, is now facing some tough competition - especially since about 30 percent of its subscribers are expected to cancel post Qwikster announcement. Is the competition going to woo them?
"The content owners have made a philosophical shift over the last six months," James McQuivey, a media and entertainment analyst for Forrester Research, told Los Angeles Times. "They've started to look at these alternative distributors as the same as old-school distributors, as long as they're getting the money."
Amazon also worked out a deal with Twentieth Century Fox to add 2,000 TV episodes and movies to their roster, which will increase the lot by 22 percent, says Wall Street Journal. One the program is live, Amazon subscribers will be able to catch reruns of "24," "Arrested Development" and "X-Files" (some of our all-time favorites), as well as movies like "Speed" and "Mrs. Doubtfire" (not really our cup of tea).
These upcoming changes beg the question: Is Amazon a good alternative to the "new Netflix," which many think is kind of lame at $7.99 sans the DVD delivery that was previously included in the deal? Amazon Prime is $79 per year (that's roughly $6.58 per month), which includes unlimited, commercial-free instant streaming of videos, as well as unlimited free two-day shipping on eligible purchases.
Hmmm... Netflix subscribers, will you be wooed?
