I was gone when you were born, Hulu. As a missionary in the Philippines I had no clue you existed until I got home and decided I needed to catch up on the two years of Lost that I missed.
"What's that? FREE tv shows online? It can't be... I love you Hulu!" That is probably what everyone thought when you started in 2007. You gave the world a way to watch their favorite shows streaming online 24 hours after they premiered on the TV. Your business model was designed by the network bigshots to battle YouTube and take the internet video market by storm. By all accounts you've been very successful. I know you've changed the way I watch TV, and I think I can speak for the millions of others who use you. Over 1.5 BILLION (not a typo) videos were watched on you LAST MONTH and the numbers keep growing. You make your money by advertising. Surely you're making a ton.
You can understand my worry when I open the Wall Street Journal and read that you are considering changing your business model (again), turning yourself into a monthly-subscrition-only site that plays mostly live TV, AKA cable on my computer. To this I hiss and boo and I think it is a poor strategic decision.
The millions who use you monthly use you because we get to watch your shows, that we love and need, on our time table. I love Modern Family, for example, but I NEVER have time on wednesday nights to watch it live on cable. Because of you, I never have to worry about missing a week, though. I know I speak for the masses when I say that I just don't have the resources to be able to tell you that I can sit down in front of my tv or computer at the same time every week to catch a show. Today's world demands flexibility and your new business model will strangle that. By switching to a monthly-subscription setup you will lose millions of users, including me. I would go to Netflix in a heartbeat, because when it comes to subscription video, they dominate (AND they're commercial free, something you probably wouldn't do if you went to subscriptions, and nobody wants to pay to watch commercials on the internet). A subscription makes you the EXACT SAME as cable TV, meaning that people will either dump you for cable (or netflix, or both) or dump cable for you. Either way Hulu (since all you are is a conglomeration of the network hotshots) you're not going to gain many subscribers in the end. People will just choose one or the other.
I know I'm a biased, poor, college student, Hulu, but I think I speak for America when I say you're amazing just the way you are. Don't screw us Americans over just because you all think you're not making enough money as it is. You're doing fine.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
To General Motors
Dear GM and new global product head, Ms. Mary Barra:
I've just been reading today's Wall Street Journal and I noticed that GM has been having some problems. Now, to be completely honest when it comes to American cars I'm pretty loyal to Ford, but I want to put in my two cents that may or may not be insightful for you.
I read that in 2007 40% of your sales came from new or heavily redesigned vehicles. This year you expect that only 12% of your sales will come from the same category of vehicles. I see this as a pretty big problem for you. I'm not very familiar with GM and your base strategy, but it seems to me that recently GM has tried to focus on driving innovation and meeting the demand of drivers everywhere for more efficient and safe vehicles. This drop in percentage of sales of new or heavily redesigned vehicles strikes me as a problem, and it reminds me of a problem another company that I am more familiar with once had: Apple.
Upon founding Apple, the CEO Steve Jobs said that he wanted to change the world through technology and innovation. Recent apparent GM strategy has shown me that this is possibly your goal as well. Like Apple in the 1990's, it seems like you have lost sight of this in recent years. When Steve Jobs came back to Apple in 1997 he made an impactful effort to return to their core strategy. It didn't take long for Apple to refocus this strategy and develop innovative new products that have led them to become the consumer electronic giant that it currently is.
It was once said that Apple was like a boat with a hole in it and a treasure on board with everyone rowing in different directions. The hole to me is the loss of focus on the strategy of innovation and as a result everyone loses their direction. The treasure of course is the potential for huge profitability. I see the same thing beginning with the GM boat in recent years. You are possibly losing focus on your strategy for innovation and people are losing their direction. You, as one of America's great auto makers, have an enormous potential sitting in your boat. To you, Ms. Barra and to the rest of GM, I suggest you plug your hole fast. Refocus on driving auto innovation and showing consumers what is possible with their cars and point the company in the right direction.
Live free, drive hard. Go America.
I've just been reading today's Wall Street Journal and I noticed that GM has been having some problems. Now, to be completely honest when it comes to American cars I'm pretty loyal to Ford, but I want to put in my two cents that may or may not be insightful for you.
I read that in 2007 40% of your sales came from new or heavily redesigned vehicles. This year you expect that only 12% of your sales will come from the same category of vehicles. I see this as a pretty big problem for you. I'm not very familiar with GM and your base strategy, but it seems to me that recently GM has tried to focus on driving innovation and meeting the demand of drivers everywhere for more efficient and safe vehicles. This drop in percentage of sales of new or heavily redesigned vehicles strikes me as a problem, and it reminds me of a problem another company that I am more familiar with once had: Apple.
Upon founding Apple, the CEO Steve Jobs said that he wanted to change the world through technology and innovation. Recent apparent GM strategy has shown me that this is possibly your goal as well. Like Apple in the 1990's, it seems like you have lost sight of this in recent years. When Steve Jobs came back to Apple in 1997 he made an impactful effort to return to their core strategy. It didn't take long for Apple to refocus this strategy and develop innovative new products that have led them to become the consumer electronic giant that it currently is.
It was once said that Apple was like a boat with a hole in it and a treasure on board with everyone rowing in different directions. The hole to me is the loss of focus on the strategy of innovation and as a result everyone loses their direction. The treasure of course is the potential for huge profitability. I see the same thing beginning with the GM boat in recent years. You are possibly losing focus on your strategy for innovation and people are losing their direction. You, as one of America's great auto makers, have an enormous potential sitting in your boat. To you, Ms. Barra and to the rest of GM, I suggest you plug your hole fast. Refocus on driving auto innovation and showing consumers what is possible with their cars and point the company in the right direction.
Live free, drive hard. Go America.
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