Cable executives on Tuesday downplayed the impact of Netflix on their businesses, arguing that it is simply another provider in a crowded market, though they were forced to acknowledge that consumers are no longer satisfied with just a cable box and a remote.Execs from Time Warner, Viacom, Comcast, Cox, and News Corp. sat down this morning for a panel discussion at The Cable Show in Chicago. When asked about Netflix's recent decision to air original content, Philippe Dauman, president and CEO at Viacom, warned that "it's not easy to get into the content business; it's a tough exercise."
"That's not really their fundamental business," Dauman said of Netflix. Viacom, on the other hand, is "100 percent focused on content," he said. Netflix is just one cog in the content wheel, he said, pointing to the "incremental money" Viacom has made by repurposing its older shows, like "Beavis and Butthead," on Web-based services like Netflix. Jeff Bewkes, chairman and CEO of Time Warner Inc., meanwhile, said Netflix "adds to competition," but talked up the online offerings of HBO, a Time Warner company. HBO has long refused to provide its content to Netflix's Watch Instantly streaming service, but it recently launched HBO Go, which allows subscribers to stream HBO shows and movies to their iPad, laptops, and smartphones.
Nonetheless, the executives can't ignore the growing presence of Internet-based streaming services like Netflix, which at last count had 22.8 million subscribers. Panel moderator Liz Claman from Fox Business Network pointed to a recent guest who said his 9-year-old son had urged him to ditch cable in their new home. More
