Fame

Netflix sued? Popularity of Squid Game lands streaming giant in hot water

Published

2 years ago

October 4, 2021

Brittany Coles

Have you seen Squid game on Netflix yet? It’s on track to become Netflix’s most popular show ever and this is the very reason a South Korean internet service provider has sued Netflix

Millions of viewers have been sucked into the terrifying world of Squid Game.

Released only a fortnight ago, the South Korean series has hit number one on Netflix in an incredible 90 countries.

In fact… this is the reason Netflix is in hot water with South Korea

A South Korean internet service provider is suing Netflix over the increased traffic thanks to its growing popularity in the country

SK Broadband claims that Netflix is South Korea’s second-largest traffic generator, after YouTube, and other streaming giants such as Facebook and Apple, who are paying network usage fees.

Google’s YouTube and Netflix the two are the only companies to not pay network usage fees.

What does Seoul want?

Essentially – SK Broadband’s lawsuit wants Netflix to pay for network access.

A Seoul court said Netflix should “reasonably” give something in return to the internet service provider for network usage.

Many South Korean politicians agree, and have spoke out against content providers who do not pay for network usage, despite the insane amount of viewers generating usage traffic.

SK Broadband says Netflix’s data traffic handled by the service had jumped 24 times from May 2018 to 1.2 trillion bits of data processed per second as of September – this stat is largely due to Squid Game.

In its court documents, SK estimated the network usage fee Netflix needed to pay was about 27.2 billion won ($31.55 million) in 2020 alone.

Will Netflix pay?

Well – they don’t want to.

Netflix said it would review SK Broadband’s claim for increased network traffic and maintenance work costs.

Reuters reported that Netflix had previously brought its own lawsuit on its obligation to pay SK Broadband network fees. The world’s largest streaming giant argued its obligation is to create the content and make it accessible.

Netflix has significantly increased its presence in South Korea and says its brought a lot of dollars to the Asian country.

In fact, Netflix said it had invested 770 billion won in South Korea’s TV and film production industry, adding an extra 16,000 jobs.

According to Bloomberg, Netflix committed to this year spending $US500 million in South Korea to capitalise on what was one of its fastest-growing markets.

Business

Deepfakes are taking over Hollywood

Published

3 days ago

May 30, 2023

ticker NEWS

Deepfakes are the online phenomenon changing the way in which we consume and trust social media

Have you ever scrolled through social media and found a celebrity selling something a bit left of centre?

Chances are you have fallen victim to a deepfake.

These images and videos are a type of artificial intelligence, which promises to create doctored videos, which are almost impossible to tell apart from the real thing.

They have typically been used in pornographic clips and for celebrity endorsements.

Fame

Prince Harry involved in ‘near catastrophic’ car chase

Published

2 weeks ago

May 18, 2023

ticker NEWS, Brittany Coles

Harry has long spoken out about his anger over press intrusion, which he blames for his mother’s death

Prince Harry, his wife Meghan and her mother were involved in a “near catastrophic car chase” involving paparazzi photographers in New York.

The incident took place after they left the Ms. Foundation for Women, where Meghan was honoured for her work.

“This relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD (New York Police Department) officers,” said Prince Harry’s spokesperson.

The chase involved paparazzi driving on the sidewalk, running red lights and driving while taking pictures.

“I thought that was a bit reckless and irresponsible,” New York Mayor Eric Adams said.

Harry has long spoken out about his anger over press intrusion, which he blames for his mother’s death.

Princess Diana was killed when her limousine crashed as it sped away from chasing paparazzi in Paris in 1997.

Harry and Meghan stepped down from their royal duties in 2020, partly over what they described as intense media harassment.

Harry is currently involved in numerous court cases in London where he has accused papers of using unlawful methods to target him and his family.

Fame

Tom Hanks open to continuing career with A.I. help

Published

2 weeks ago

May 17, 2023

ticker NEWS, Brittany Coles

Despite the crackdown on A.I., one famous actor has raised the prospect of his career continuing after his death by using the technology

‘Forrest Gump’ and ‘Cast Away’ actor Tom Hanks says new tech could be used to recreate his image to appear in movies “from now until kingdom come”.

Hanks was asked about the legal ramifications of A.I. on a recent podcast with Adam Buxton.

He says talks are being held in the film industry about how to protect actors from the effects of the technology.

Hanks told the host: “I could be hit by a bus tomorrow and that’s it, but performances can go on and on and on and on.”

The award-winning actor acknowledged that tech developments could lead to an AI-generated version of himself appearing in films he may not not normally choose.