How Local Streaming Service Stan Is Taking On The Big Dogs At Netflix

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Published

November 4, 2016

Streaming media is undoubtedly the current battleground of the never-ending entertainment war. Whether it’s Spotify, Netflix or our very own Stan, each player has their own advantages when it comes to securing the biggest piece of the pie. The pie being our undivided attention and access to our money holes (wallets).

It’s fair to assume that the Netflix are holding the majority of the streaming video pie, particularly from a global perspective, but that might not always be the case.

According to their CEO, Mike Sneesby, local contender Stan have experienced huge, consistent growth in the industry, despite having only a domestic presence. We had a chat with Mike to get an idea of their strategy when it comes to taking an actual goliath like Netflix.

The best way to frame the entire Stan Vs Netflix debate, he says, is to answer a question that he gets asked a lot: what is the difference between Stan and Netflix?

“Netflix is really driven by a bunch of great Netflix original shows. Stan is the best shows from the biggest US networks and Hollywood studios brought to you at the same time as they’re getting them in the US, complimented of course, by our own local original productions,” Mike told PEDESTRIAN.TV.

It’s that difference in programming that gives Stan a big leg up in the Australian market, allowing them to fill the gaps missed by Netflix.

“The chief of content at Netflix recently claimed that Netflix would have, within a couple of years, around 50% of their entire catalogue as Netflix original content,” he said. It’s that money that was once spent on acquiring content that is “now drying up for them.”

“So we have this huge support and momentum behind us by the Hollywood studios and the US networks because we represent that channel into the Australian market where we can deliver the biggest US networks and studios straight to consumers and because we’re building rapidly in scale, we can continue to afford to pay the right amount of licensing dollars to acquire those shows.”

With that difference in direction becoming more prominent between the two companies, Mike says it’s less about who has the bigger market share, and more about a harmonious relationship. “We really generally talk about each other as being co-pioneers in the Australian market,” he said.

“I can honestly say that when we go out and look at our plans for financial year ’17, it is really different to traditional media where a lot of it is about who’s got what share and who’s gonna take what share off the other player, because a lot of people have both Netflix and Stan, that’s such a common thing for people to be taking both.”

Because people love the offerings of both platforms and each is quite affordable, “there’s an absolute reason for people to take both services, and they do.”

As Mike mentioned, Stan also do their own local content in the form of the Wolf Creek and No Activity TV series, but their primary focus is always scoping out the best content that we Aussies are absolutely gagging for. Cracker shows like Broad City and The Girlfriend Experience. “That’s really the difference, Netflix is Netflix originals, we’re the best of US networks, Hollywood studios and our own original productions.”

Mike credits his stellar content team for sourcing the best of that content which at times, can be signed without even seeing a pilot, as was the case with Breaking Bad spin-off Better Call Saul. But lets be honest, anything Vince Gilligan touches is pure gold.

“We just go out there and confidently buy the biggest shows in the world, we’ve got an amazing content team who are obviously based here on the ground in Australia but spend a lot of time in LA, in Hollywood with the Hollywood studios looking at content, negotiating content deals and I think it’s one of our real secret sauces at Stan,” he said.

As for what Mike and the crew have brewing for 2017, frankly, it’s a fucking mammoth lineup. As well as Better Call Saul, Girlfriend Experience, Sherlock, UnReal and Billions all returning for their respective new seasons, they’ll be running some fresh and crispy content that’ll have your mouth straight up watering.

One such banger is a Jim Carrey produced series titled I’m Dying Up Here, exploring the Hollywood comedy scene in the 70’s. The cult classic Twin Peaks will also be returning exclusively to Stan after a lengthy 25 year break between seasons.

“For people who’ve watched Twin Peaks, they probably saw in the final episodes of the original show where they talk about returning in 25 years, this is that return with David Lynch back in the creative driving seat and a cast of some 200+ top gear talent, including most of the original cast.”

It’s going to be a huge year for the platform and that’s barely scratching the surface of the first half of 2017 alone.

Looking even further forward, you may have recently heard the CEO of Netflix talking about how the future of entertainment could be all about smashing pills. I asked Mike for his take on the subject and what he reckons comes after the streaming revolution.

“I think, first and foremost, there’s a long way to go in terms of this existing market of purely consuming all media over an internet channel. That in itself doesn’t sound groundbreaking to you and I, but there is a huge part of the population that still have to move to that world of consumption and that world of thinking.” he said.

“3D, virtual reality, I think all of these things will find a place and the question becomes for mainstream audiences, are they going to, within the next 10 to 15 years, evolve into something that has broad commercial applications for general television viewing?I don’t think we’re all of a sudden gonna be in a world where 80 percent of the content we watch on a streaming platform is created in a virtual reality domain, but I certainly think you’ll see experimentation with that.”

“But I think we’re a long from the world of swallowing a pill or sticking a chip under our skin to view these things.”

Agreed, I’m certainly not going to put any kind of electronic wizardry under my skin any time soon. In the meantime, you can suss the lit pics from the huge Halloween party Stan and PEDESTRIAN.TV threw last week.

Photo: Supplied.