[dollaaron]

> "They will take HBO linear and call it HBO Linear,” he said. “That is HBO if you really want to watch it on somebody else’s schedule.”

Am I the only one who likes shows being made available once a week, rather than all at once?

[FreeKill]

Is that because you don't trust yourself not to watch it all in a binge situation? The shows on netflix could easily be watched one episode at a time on a regular schedule if that's what you prefer. You get both options (and hundreds of other scenarios) instead of just the one decided by someone else (or else having to record it on a DVR to make your own schedule).

[dollaaron]

It's nice to know that the other people watching a show are also at the same point as you are (or relatively close), allowing you to speculate on what might happen next in the time between episodes.

I also like looking forward to the next episode, which doesn't really happen when you can watch that next episode immediately (and self imposed waiting doesn't feel the same).

[FreeKill]

I agree that one thing that's lost is the ability to discuss episodes with people as a show progresses. Since you never know what episode a person is on you can't really risk discussing things until you're sure the person has caught up. With weekly shows like Game of Thrones for instance, you can feel pretty comfortable discussing an episode amongst other fans. Not sure if that's really something I'll miss when it's gone, but it's definitely a big change with Netflix that ultimately started as a smaller disruption with DVR devices...

I suppose personally my feelings on the matter is even though I might lose the few advantages that you mentioned, the disadvantages far outweigh it and I won't miss the airing of shows like Breaking Bad or Suits that took one season and split them in half with gigantic gaps in between (months or even years), to the point where you can't even remember where the show was going by the time it returns. I like the freedom to watch at whatever schedule I prefer, without any kind of arbitrary limitations that may or may not suit my lifestyle at the time, and the confidence to know I'm going to be able to see a story through from start to finish once devote time to it...

[brc]

Well there is a product/service in there. Discussion channels tied in with your Netflix Id so that you you can only discuss topics with people on the same schedule. You could also join a group which had the programming pre-determined, and drip fed the shows to you on a specific schedule, like every Sunday night. You get the benefits of a scheduled delivery of content and associated social benefits, but you also get to join a schedule which suits your times.

[danielbln]

Reddit works well for that. The House Of Cards subreddit for example features a thread per episode, which has pretty much replaced my per-episode watercooler talk.

[rodgerd]

> It's nice to know that the other people watching a show are also at the same point as you are (or relatively close), allowing you to speculate on what might happen next in the time between episodes.

The shared cultural experience is nice, but utterly foreign to those of us outside the US, where the discussion arrives weeks, months, or even years before the show.

[lmm]

You mean you don't pirate them?

[interpol_p]

I prefer to develop my own schedule for watching a show.

Generally I wait for the entire season of a show to come out and then schedule several nights of viewing (over a couple months) with friends where we watch 3-4 episodes at a time. The downside of this is having to avoid discussion of the show in the few months after release.

With Netflix dumping seasons at a time it makes it much easier, and much more fun, to do this.

[praseodym]

Netflix did exactly this for Better Call Saul in Latin America and Europe, where the show is not aired on regular cable channels. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Better_Call_Saul#Broadcast

[MichaelGG]

While simultaneously removing the ability of hard-of-hearing users to read what's being said.

[noblethrasher]

We'll lose the sense of community that comes from simultaneous viewings. But, people still bond over books and book series, which is what Netflix programming will be like.