Yes, this is that phase of time when we can have almost every lavish or say comfortable thing that US and most of the western countries afford. Puzzled a little?  Relax buddy. It is a good side, Netflix has launched its services globally, simultaneously bringing its TV network to more than 130 countries in the world including India. And finally, 2016 is the year when you can actually get to use the phrase –

Netflix and Chill

For those who are still finding it hard to understand the above quoted phrase and hardly have an idea about Netflix, here’s the food for you – Netflix Inc. is an American multinational provider of on-demand Internet streaming media, and of flat rate DVD-by-mail in the United States, where mailed DVDs and are sent via Permit Reply Mail. As of October 2015, Netflix reported 69.17 million subscribers worldwide, including more than 43 million in the U.S.

So, what’s up?
Now in India, Netflix is available on virtually any device that has an Internet connection, including personal computers, tablets, smartphones, Smart TVs and game consoles, and automatically provides the best possible streaming quality based on available bandwidth. Many titles, including Netflix original series and films, are available in high-definition with Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 surround sound and some in Ultra HD 4K. Advanced recommendation technologies with up to five user profiles help members discover entertainment they’ll love.

Also, Netflix comes with a free goody i.e., a free subscription for a month.

Try Netflix for free for one month by signing up at www.netflix.com.

The plans start from Rs 500 a month and go up to Rs 800. Ultra HD content is also available, but only in the premium plan. People can opt to get the Netflix streaming service to up to 4 screens. Local and international content will be available at one click of a button.

Till here, it looks fancy and exciting – but wait! Before you start diving into your day dreams, come back to the ground and look at the reality. What is your internet speed? Take the pride to say it out loud because that is what we have. Okay not just me and you, even surveys say how worst our internet speed it – India’s average Internet speed continues to be one of the slowest among countries in the Asia-Pacific region, according to a study conducted by Akamai Technologies. Our country came in second for the second quarter in the row with an average connection speed of 2.3 Mbps, higher than 2 Mbps last quarter, and marginally higher than the last standing Indonesia with 2.2 Mbps.

So, the global average speed is 3.8 Mbps and we have 2.2 which shows how far below we are from the mean.

All this information drive us into a huge pool of pondering questions –
1. Will Netflix be able to overcome this poor internet connection hurdle in India?
2. Will people pay and watch when they can ‘free’ly watch the same on YouTube or download through Torrents?
3. Preferably, the upper Middle class would afford Netflix since it is ‘afford’able 😛 but will it affect the number of users/subscribers of YouTube?
4. Will the comforts of streaming and watching your favorite show/movies on TV overpower

Do you have more questions? Post yours in the comment section because it is fun to ask questions!!