A couple of days ago Amazon ran a banner across their site advertising a new in-house production called The Man in the High Tower.
It's an alternative history post WWII show where the Allies lose the war. I've watched the first two episodes and think it may entertain several folks here. It's free if you have Amazon Prime.
Would recommend you check it out.
"Man in the High Castle" - based on Philip Dick's novel of the same title. Will be watching this with The Wife starting tomorrow night. Has got some decent reviews online too.
This is on my 'must see' list.
Amazon has made a tradition of putting the pilots for its original series online for the public to rate and review prior to ordering them to series. The Man in the High Castle is the service's highest-rated pilot in its short history.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/11/20/what-if-the-nazis-won-inside-amazon-s-the-man-in-the-high-castle.html
^Nice.
I plan on watching the series soon. The book on which it is based is a must-read. It will be interesting to see how the producers have handled the original story.
With Isa now running the show I have a feeling we need not worry about 'I, Robot' syndrome running amuck.
I have no idea how revenue models like this work. Netflix, HBO, et al all offer these top shelve series for free. How do they make money?
Quote from: LongBlade on November 23, 2015, 07:53:41 PM
I have no idea how revenue models like this work. Netflix, HBO, et al all offer these top shelve series for free. How do they make money?
You have to be a Prime member, at $99/yr, to watch. These shows are designed to encourage subscriptions.
Quote from: LongBlade on November 23, 2015, 07:53:41 PM
I have no idea how revenue models like this work. Netflix, HBO, et al all offer these top shelve series for free. How do they make money?
Most people don't realize that retail is not their real business anymore. Their prices have gotten so high on things I used to buy I've started going back to brick and mortar shops whenever I can.
Their two real businesses are payment processing and data storage. They make way more off that than retail stuff. And I don't know if they plan on releasing DVD, Blu-Ray, etc of these series but that is a whole other revenue stream.
You can sign up for Amazon Prime for free for a month. Just set a calendar reminder and cancel it if you want.
Quote from: Staggerwing on November 23, 2015, 08:07:10 PM
Quote from: LongBlade on November 23, 2015, 07:53:41 PM
I have no idea how revenue models like this work. Netflix, HBO, et al all offer these top shelve series for free. How do they make money?
You have to be a Prime member, at $99/yr, to watch. These shows are designed to encourage subscriptions.
I find $99/year is a bargain. We do most of our Christmas shopping there and we shop periodically throughout the year.
Like it's said above Amazon Prime isn't free...it's not expensive but it's not free. Same thing with HBO and Netflix. By far the highest quality shows right now are coming from HBO.
It's free for a month. I got it for free earlier this summer but canceled it after I made several Amazon purchases with it.
Quote from: Gusington on November 23, 2015, 08:56:24 PM
Like it's said above Amazon Prime isn't free...it's not expensive but it's not free. Same thing with HBO and Netflix. By far the highest quality shows right now are coming from HBO.
I get that it's free, but $99 isn't infinite money. Even if they're only paying $10/package (which, depending on size, is either over or under, but probably average) then after ten shipments I'm making money. I guarantee I ship ten times a year. Which means that producing this show isn't being paid for by the $99.
I get it, Amazon is making money. But they only started breaking even a couple of years ago. I'm just not seeing it.
Maybe the show is designed to pull in the Staggerwings of the world who don't have prime but can't live without the free movies?
But then that gets back to the free shipping...
Fine. I'll do some searching and try to figure this out.
Quote from: LongBlade on November 23, 2015, 09:03:28 PM
Maybe the show is designed to pull in the Staggerwings of the world who don't have prime but can't live without the free movies?
Eh? I've been a Prime subscriber since Day One. ???
Quote from: Gusington on November 23, 2015, 08:56:24 PM
Like it's said above Amazon Prime isn't free...it's not expensive but it's not free. Same thing with HBO and Netflix. By far the highest quality shows right now are coming from HBO.
"Highest quality" from HBO? GoT, sure. But I'd say more like "Highest Budget". I ditched after the last GoT season and haven't regretted it one bit. After they started spending all their budget on occasional home-brewed stuff, the rest of their line-up has generally been shit.
There are some great quality series made by Netflix right now. Without costing more than the national reserves of some countries.
Amazon Prime's own in-house series have largely consisted of a very few pilot-like episodes, with series quickly cut short. The non-Amazon stuff is mostly junk, with the occasional interesting one.
But I don't have Prime for the movies; I got sick of wasting lots of time looking for specific items in local stores and coming up empty, so the 2-day shipping deal helps save on some things. That's not to say I wouldn't like to see some decent stuff regarding Amazon movies/series. Maybe they're starting to improve in that area?
You could have ended your post at GoT for the win. That's all it takes for me...but for some reason the latest season was removed from On Demand and I could not finish, which pisses me off.
All I know is a bunch of New Yorkers are being extremely butthurt over advertising of this show on NYC subways:
(https://www.grogheads.com/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.vosizneias.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2015%2F11%2FRTX1VO8W-layout-comp.jpg&hash=1af4c1f25df0a89acf7976e07e5ed3904d1846e6)
(https://cbsnewyork.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/gettyimages-498626268.jpg?w=798)
(https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/9029908bf670e4231c224972df575ff1d6f72da6/0_0_4869_2922/master/4869.jpg?w=620&q=85&auto=format&sharp=10&s=076c85645a124f26d0e02b3e35965bbf)
I have a hard time seeing the Iron Cross as a Nazi symbol, but try explaining history to people that want to be offended by everything.
The butthurt asswipes won anyway...they removed/are removing the ads now.
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2015/11/24/man-in-the-high-castle-subway-ads/
^Part of the argument there is that the MTA would not allow pro Israel ads on its trains, but allowed (albeit fictitious) Nazi and Imperial Japanese ads.
I'm not sure Phillip K. Dick would be too happy about it either.
Granted, Gus...but this is a TV show, not a political promo for Naziism and/or the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. There's a pretty clear distinction, at least to me.
^In this day and age of hyper ridiculous sensitivity to everything...does it matter?
Quote from: Gusington on November 25, 2015, 11:07:44 PM
^In this day and age of hyper ridiculous sensitivity to everything...does it matter?
Apparently not.
You'd have to be way out in the deep end to make the mistake that this is a pro-nazi or imperialist Japan film, but nutjobs are everywhere.
I guess this is the biggest sign I'm no longer cool - I can't get outraged at every perceived slight. I doubt if a bunch of us went to a bar and tried to pick up chicks that I could fake it.
QuoteI know. Pillsbury Crescent Rolls are so racist against Muslims. I quit eating them last Thanksgiving. Wanna go back to my place?
Nope. Couldn't make it through that thought without laughing. I am doomed.
Quote from: LongBlade on November 26, 2015, 11:40:30 PM
Quote from: Gusington on November 25, 2015, 11:07:44 PM
^In this day and age of hyper ridiculous sensitivity to everything...does it matter?
Apparently not.
You'd have to be way out in the deep end to make the mistake that this is a pro-nazi or imperialist Japan film, but nutjobs are everywhere.
I guess this is the biggest sign I'm no longer cool - I can't get outraged at every perceived slight. I doubt if a bunch of us went to a bar and tried to pick up chicks that I could fake it.
QuoteI know. Pillsbury Crescent Rolls are so racist against Muslims. I quit eating them last Thanksgiving. Wanna go back to my place?
Nope. Couldn't make it through that thought without laughing. I am doomed.
O0