[bugsbunnyak]

I am continually surprised that Netflix has failed to play any real hardball. Seed (ie: astroturf) a class-action lawsuit against Verizon for breach of contract. Make a big PAC donation to the attorney general in a consumer-friendly state like Washington or Massachusetts and let the dogs run. Get the city council of a largish and liberal locale like Seattle to consider a municipal internet service. Heck, cut off service to Verizon subscribers the day House of Cards comes out.

[dave5104]

I've always thought that Netflix was in a tough spot when it comes to cutting consumers off, because (1) they'd be losing money, and (2) they'd need to responsibly refund those consumers or else they'll look terrible.

However, TV networks cut off access to cable provider customers when they can't reach a deal on price... so why can't Netflix do the same? I mean, if ISPs really want to turn the Internet into a cable-like place, they should expect that similar disputes are going to happen.

[mbreese]

You know... that's not a bad idea. So long as they refund (or more likely extend) the accounts for people accessing Netflix from those ISPs.

Or, maybe Netflix should intentionally limit the number of people that could access their service from a given ISP so that the overall quality is maintained? If you try to access the service and you get denied for ISP capacity reasons, then you'd get that day refunded.

They need to do something to make sure that the customer knows where the problem is. But, instead of playing too rough, I think publicly shaming the ISPs is the best approach. At least for now.

[hga]

I don't know, this strikes me as "real" hardball. Many of the things you suggest are also that, but ultimately this is a political problem and will be won or lost in the political arena. And Netflix is getting a lot of voters pissed off at Verizon, and no doubt other ISPs in the future.

Some of the things you suggest will affect politicians, but the ultimate one is a credible threat of sending them home to spend more time with their families after an election. It's how gun owners have moved mountains starting in the mid-80s or so (the area I'm most familiar with), and if Netflix is playing the long game, it's how they're going to win ... and overall help us win the net neutrality battle.

[crdoconnor]

>Heck, cut off service to Verizon subscribers the day House of Cards comes out.

They'd be shooting themselves in the foot. That will just make Verizon subscribers mad.

They should just flash up messages every so often when the network is congested to get people to call their congresspeople and ask them to support net neutrality and firing ex-comcast lobbyists from the FCC.

[specialist]

Viacom and CableOne are fighting it out. Negotiations for licensing content failed.

Viacom is now blocking CableOne customers from accessing videos (e.g. Comedy Central) online.

I've heard Viacom is encouraging customers to contact CableOne about the problem.