Just in case you thought Netflix was backing down to Verizon earlier today, the video company has a clear message: Nope, no way — we’re still going to gripe about the telco’s pipes.
Netflix to Verizon: Nope, Your Congested Pipes Are Still Your Fault
Not sure this is accomplishing anything, but it’s fun to watch. In this installment, Netflix accuses its partner of Chris Christie-ish tactics.
Mattel
Peter Kafka covered media and technology, and their intersection, at Vox. Many of his stories can be found in his Kafka on Media newsletter, and he also hosts the Recode Media podcast.
That’s the takeaway from Netflix’s response to a cease and desist letter Verizon sent last week, demanding that Netflix stop sending to its subscribers messages that blamed Verizon for slow video streams.
Netflix’s answer, written by General Counsel David Hyman, is in many ways an extension of a blog post the company published earlier today: Hyman says Netflix will stop sending those particular messages to customers of Verizon and other ISPs — but says it could bring them back, and that it “will continue to work on ways to communicate network conditions to our consumers.”
(Today’s earlier blog post, for instance, indicates that Verizon’s broadband speeds have declined in the last month. That’s one way to communicate, if a Verizon customer knew where to find that message.)
Just as important is the rest of the note, which places the blame for Verizon’s slow pipes on Verizon. Verizon has argued the opposite, but Hyman says that’s right from the Chris Christie playbook — “like blaming drivers on a bridge for traffic jams when you’re the one who decided to leave three lanes closed during rush hour.”
You can read the rest here. Back to you, Verizon — which, remember, has signed a commercial deal with Netflix. With partners like these!
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.
