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Netflix content chief says piracy drops whenever Netflix launches in new markets

Published May 2nd, 2013 4:30PM EDT
BGR

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Netflix’s chief content officer has a novel way to combat online piracy: give people easy and affordable ways to access content. In an interview with Stuff, Netflix content chief Ted Sarandos said that “the best way to combat piracy isn’t legislatively or criminally but by giving good options” and observed that “when we launch in a territory the Bittorrent traffic drops as the Netflix traffic grows.” Sarandos went on to explain that the growth in overall television content means that people will naturally “want access to it” and said that content providers “can’t use the internet as a marketing vehicle and then not as a delivery vehicle.” It goes without saying that Sarandos’s vision for combatting online piracy sounds a lot more consumer-friendly than seizing 9-year-olds’ Winnie the Pooh laptops.

Brad Reed
Brad Reed Staff Writer

Brad Reed has written about technology for over eight years at BGR.com and Network World. Prior to that, he wrote freelance stories for political publications such as AlterNet and the American Prospect. He has a Master's Degree in Business and Economics Journalism from Boston University.