As of 2019, the TV and movie streaming site is available in 26 different languages and has over 167 million users. But there are other options sprouting up which could have the potential to challenge Netflix for supremacy. One of the most notable options is HBO GO, which launched in Vietnam last year. With a wealth of quality content, does it have the potential to knock Netflix of its perch?
HBO Has High-Quality Programming
When it comes to standard of television, some would argue that HBO is where the best programming is. The Sopranos, for example, is widely considered to be the godfather of the modern television series. The winner of 21 Primetime Emmy Awards and five Golden Globes was ranked number one in the list of the 100 greatest TV shows of all time in Rolling Stone magazine.
More recently, Game of Thrones has broken numerous records and revolutionized television once again. The adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire saga was seen as a gamble when it was first released in 2011, but it paid off incredibly. The medieval fantasy has gone on to achieve various feats, with the final season of the show breaking HBO’s streaming records and attracting an average of 17.4 million viewers.
Curb Your Enthusiasm is another masterpiece in the HBO catalog. The sitcom created by Larry David is arguably better than the comedian’s previous work, Seinfeld. It has been on air for twenty years and there have been ten seasons in that time. The series has been nominated for 38 Primetime Emmy Awards and has an audience rating of 96 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.
Along with these greats there are a multitude of other modern classics on HBO GO including The Wire, The Handmaid’s Tale, True Detective, and Westworld. All of these programmers have received top critical acclaim and are notable in their high production quality. One of the reasons for this is that the network took care in bringing in some of the best writers, directors, and producers in the industry.
Netflix Has the Wealth of Options
HBO GO may well have the better quality in its catalog, with a number of shows frequently listed in the top series of all time. However, it could be argued that Netflix has a greater strategy for gaining mass appeal from its offerings. It does this by producing an enormous amount of content with new movies and television shows dropping every month. There are a lot of flops among the releases, with the likes of Netflix original film The Ridiculous 6 and How it Ends being two noteworthy examples. There are a few gems as well, though, including Okja and Marriage Story.
Netflix has also adopted the strategy of releasing content which has high franchise potential. On HBO, only a handful of the offerings have related content in other media. But on Netflix, a vast number of the series have spinoff games as a way to attract higher viewing figures. For example, there is a Narcos slot game at Betway Casino which has served to make players at the site aware of the thrilling offering. There is a Game of Thrones slot available there as well, but this was released long after the HBO title became famous. The Narcos game dropped after the first season of the series, so it helped draw attention to the second and third seasons. Another famous example of Netflix’s penchant for franchises is the series of Witcher games for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One from CD Projekt Red, which have helped make more people aware of the show of the same name starring Henry Cavill.
Could Take Some Time to See a Shift
Netflix clearly takes the quantity over quality approach, while it could be argued that HBO GO does the opposite. At the present time, though, it’s Netflix’s strategy which is most likely to appeal to a wide number of viewers. With HBO GO being in the game for such a short space of time, it could try to catch up with Netflix by releasing a higher number of shows and films over the next few years. However, to be able to do this it may end up losing its reputation for producing high-quality content.
There are also some other streaming services to consider which could end up beating both Netflix and HBO GO. Amazon Prime has raised its game in recent times with some hugely popular offerings like The Boys. And then there’s Disney + which is going to have all of the most popular movies and series from the esteemed studio on it. Netflix is likely to reign supreme in Vietnam for the time being, but there could be a shift of power in the years ahead.
By Evelina Popova. The opinions expressed here are her own.
