Bloomberg - Netflix A New Challenge Awaiting In The U.K.
Netflix, which continually has to fend off attacks from critics who claim that its streaming service increasingly resembles a second-tier cable channel that offers mostly old movies and television shows, may find itself locked out of new content by many of its British partners when it debuts in the U.K. and Ireland early next year. (A start date has not yet been announced.)
According to Bloomberg News, Netflix's deal with commercial broadcaster ITV may not allow it to offer some of ITV's most successful shows, including the hit drama Downton Abbey . And its deal with the BBC will prevent it from airing any of its hits until several months after they have aired. (In the case of the popular car show Top Gear , the wait is six months; Top Gear is one of the most pirated TV shows on BitTorrent and is generally available for downloading within minutes after it is broadcast in the U.K.) Netflix is also entering an online market in the U.K. already dominated by Amazon's Lovefilm and where the major broadcasters already offer their own streaming service.
