PODCAST: Shomi and CraveTV vs. (unblocked) Netflix

Starting this year, Canadians have three major online streaming services to choose from. Netflix was the original and still the champ, but now it's being challenged by CraveTV and Shomi, both of which are available to all Canadians even without a cable TV subscription.

So how do the two challengers stack up against Netflix? How do they fare against unblocked versions of Netflix which offers access to TV and movies not regularly available through Netflix in Canada? 

I looked at a total of 127 TV shows available on either Shomi or CraveTV and then cross referenced them with Netflix to see what, if any, overlap existed between the libraries of the competing streaming services. My conclusion, which I discussed on this episode with return guest Tyler Orton of Business in Vancouver, is that CraveTV and Shomi offer additional value for Canadian consumers of online video. But mileage may vary, especially in Canada where the TV and cable conglomerates operate as exclusive resellers of American content. 

We also talked about the user experience with the three streaming services, whether Netflix is actually cracking down on VPNs, why Canada needs something Hulu-ish, why CBS is creating a new version of Star Trek accessible only through its online network and how unblocking Netflix is a path to world peace. And I give a shout-out to the Zune.

A correction to the recording: I misquoted the prices of Shomi and CraveTV. They are $9 and $8 respectively.

You can hear our discussion now.

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The details

I focused on TV shows only because they provide the easiest direct comparison of content libraries compared to theatrical release movies. One of the services, CraveTV, has almost no theatrical release content. My suspicion, unsupported by hard evidence, is that TV shows form the bulk of viewing on streaming services for most people, at least for binge watching. I also excluded children's programming, which is heavily present on both Shomi and Netflix but absent from CraveTV.

The list of shows

So here's the table (the article continues after this break as well). I've listed the shows alphabetically, and whether they are found on Shomi, Crave or Netflix. For Netflix I've listed the number of regions in which the show is available and I've identified the region if it's only one. I've also indicated which shows are found on the Canadian Netflix catalogue. (Note that parts of this table could be incorrect as soon as it was posted due to the limited time periods for content licensing. A show available on Netflix today could disappear tomorrow. Let me know of any errors.)

What does this mean?

My choice of content was meant to be broad but not exhaustive. I used the Unofficial Netflix Online Global Search site at uNoGS.com, which seems to be the most comprehensive online source for discovering what's available in Netflix around the world.

Of the 127 shows, 61 are on CraveTV and 66 on Shomi. Of those, 11 are on the Netflix Canadian catalogue and 76 on unblocked Netflix. Shows found on unblocked Netflix break down to 37 also on CraveTV and 40 also on Shomi.

Only two of the 127 shows, Homeland and Friday Night Lights, are on all three of the streaming services when only Canadian Netflix is included in the comparison. Widening that comparison to the unblocked regions of Netflix yields five shows found on all three services.

More numbers: the show found in the highest number of Netflix regions from my sample is Spartacus, found in 236 regions. Black Mirror is next with 233 regions.

My conclusions: Based on my limited sample, CraveTV and Shomi offer additional value you wouldn't otherwise have access to even if you unblock Netflix. If you subscribe only to Netflix's Canadian catalogue, which is the way Netflix intends it to be, also subscribing to Shomi and CraveTV would add a considerable library of content to which you would not otherwise have access. This is particularly true of HBO, Showtime and U.S. network programming. But unblocked Netflix on its own provides good value. If you decided against CraveTV and Shomi, subscribing to a VPN or unblocking service and accessing Netflix globally would give you a good chunk of the content (more than half of my limited sample selection) that you would otherwise get from the other two Canadian services.

Unblocking Netflix alone gets you a lot of content. Subscribing to Shomi and Crave TV and sticking with Canadian Netflix gets you even more. Choosing Shomi, CraveTV and unblocked Netflix will get you more than you can humanly watch. Deciding among the various options is not black and white. It comes down to budget and how much of your life you devote to watching screens.

Netflix costs $10 a month for a standard plan. Shomi costs $9 a month and CraveTV $8 a month. (Rogers and Shaw customers can get bundles which include "free" subscriptions to Shomi.)

VPNs and unblocking services can cost from $5 to $10 a month but mileage varies. Many offer six month or yearly subscription plans which lower the cost. There are free VPNs and unblockers, but aside from Hotspot Shield I stay away from them. Nothing is free on the Internet.

Subscribing to all three streaming services without unblocking Netflix costs you $27 a month, not including taxes. Subscribing to Netflix alone while unblocking it costs you $15 to $25 a month. Subscribing to all three and unblocking Netflix costs $32 to $37 a month, which is approaching basic cable package prices. Unblocked Netflix is the cheapest way to get the most bang for your buck, but as my admittedly limited sample shows, you will miss out on some programming.

There are a bunch of caveats and considerations:

• Netflix announced earlier this month that it would begin actively blocked VPNs and unblocking services. Until now, it has turned a blind eye to such activity but Internet wisdom suggests content licensers are forcing Netflix to crack down. Whether Netflix will succeed in an arms race with the plethora of businesses offering unblocking to consumers is an open question. Hulu in the U.S., for example, successfully blocks VPNs, but seems less effective at DNS-based unblocking. Reports last week out of Australia suggested Netflix has already begun its campaign.
• Netflix has a growing and excellent library of original programming, from Daredevil to Making of a Murderer, which on their own are more than worth the monthly subscription cost even without trying to unblock regions outside of Canada. The argument about Netflix's Canadian catalogue being lousy is stale and out of date.
• Shomi has licensed some of Amazon Prime's programming, including award-winning shows like Transparent and Mozart in the Jungle. None of that programming is on Netflix anywhere. Shomi also carries a couple of Hulu productions like Bosch. I'm still waiting for Man in the High Castle to appear. It's also snagged acclaimed U.S. fare including Mr. Robot and Outlander.
• CraveTV's HBO catalogue is limited to past programming. You'll find The Sopranos and The Wire but not current shows like Game of Thrones or Girls. Its Showtime selection is more up to date and includes current shows like Homeland and Ray Donovan, albeit limited to past seasons.
• Netflix has an excellent interface, fast streaming and is available on almost every device and platform you can imagine. CraveTV and Shomi have interfaces widely criticized for being buggy and clumsy and are found on a limited number of devices. Despite its problems, I do appreciate Shomi's attempt to bring a fun, human touch to its catalogue presentation, with staff picks and recommendations based on news events and holidays. Human curation is nice compared to the opaque and calculated algorithms of Netflix.
• Some Canadian cordcutters go beyond unblocked Netflix and find ways to subscribe to Hulu, Amazon Prime and HBO Now, all of which are restricted to the U.S. and a few other select countries and actively block VPNs. Going this route increases content selection and makes Shomi and CraveTV less useful. But it also adds cost and technical complexity.
• Unblocking Netflix feels like a magical exercise with a world of forbidden content at your finger tips. But keeping up with what's available on which region, especially new additions, is a huge pain. Services like Flixed help, but there's no easy way to keep abreast of the dozens of different regions all at once.
• Accessing an English-language show in a non-English region of Netflix requires you to turn off subtitles (unless you want subtitles in German, Spanish, Japanese etc.). That's fine as long as the show is all in English, but if it includes dialogue in other languages, subtitles in English are unavailable. This makes wondering what's going on with the Russian-speaking characters in The Americans rather difficult.
• Accessing Netflix regions in other countries also yields programming unique to those regions, cultures and languages. That's another reason why Netflix blocking VPNs is an unfortunate, if inevitable outcome in the online streaming content wars. Discovering and sharing in what Netflix users watch in Panama, Russia and Thailand is a fascinating cultural exchange on a global scale. Planet-wide licensing of content can't come fast enough for international understanding.