Netflix and Max Are Locking Full Resolution Behind Premium Packages, and It’s Nasty Work
While going through my many subscriptions in an attempt to slim my monthly streaming budget, I started to notice an insultingly undermentioned inclusion in different tiers of plans: paywalling video quality. Specifically, Netflix and Max’s locking of 4K video content to only the highest tier of subscription, usually coming out to a wallet-bruising $20 a month or more.
It feels especially silly when those platforms, that tout the quality of their prestige programming, use actually watching their precious art in full resolution as a dangling carrot.
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Here are some examples of streamers that you might not even realize aren’t providing you full-resolution content:
- MAX: Only “Premium” plan at $20.99 per month offers 4K. Ads and non-ad “Standard” plan both provide only 1080p, no 4K.
- NETFLIX: Only “Premium” plan at $24.99 per month offers 4K. Both ad-supported and non-ad “Standard” provide only 1080p, no 4K.
- PARAMOUNT+: Only “Paramount+ with SHOWTIME” at $12.99 per month offers 4K.
- BUNDLES: Particularly annoying is that zero of Max’s “bundles” with Disney+ and Hulu provide 4K. If you get Max through a bundle, you’re locked to 1080p.
In case you’re shrugging your shoulders at this as “the price of doing business,” you should know that plenty of streamers (in my opinion, rightfully) treat 4K as a default resolution. Hulu, Disney+, Prime Video and Apple TV all provide 4K regardless of plan choice, even including ad-supported plans. Now, not all content is available in 4K, especially older content, and that’s unavoidable. But to have content being produced and filmed specifically for 4K viewing, only to lock that quality behind additional cost? That doesn’t pass my personal sniff test.
Could this also all be chalked up to customers not reading the fine print? I suppose, but there are two details that wrinkle my nose on that front. First, 4K should rightfully be considered the standard for most screens these days, and people should assume that when it’s the common resolution offered on even entry-level televisions, it should be utilized. For example, a 4K, 43-inch TV from even a premier company like Samsung is available for well under $250. Hell, the resolution of iPhone screens are higher than 1080p at 2556x1179, meaning that even watching a show on your phone you’re being denied a (small) level of clarity.
The second thing that drives me crazy is the use of the confusing phrase “Full HD.” In plain English, this combination of words seems to suggest you’re receiving the “full” level of high-definition available to you. The problem is that “Full HD” is actually a technical term, which indicates a resolution of 1080p. 4K resolution, in the same convention, is called “Ultra HD.” If this seems confusing, it’s because it is for anyone who doesn’t regularly shop for PC gaming monitors.
If you aren’t sure of the difference between 1080p and 4k, here’s a quick breakdown: Resolution refers to pixels on a screen, which are individual squares capable of displaying a single color. If you’ve ever played with a Lite Brite, that’s a good way to imagine it. Zoom in far enough on your TV, and you’ll see this grid of individual colors, which come together to show a picture. The higher the resolution (regardless of screen size), the more single-color squares that are packed into that screen, meaning a higher level of detail.
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Now, is 1080p watchable? Of course. We’re still talking about squares that are in the realm of tiny fractions of inches. You might be wondering, “Is 4K even that much of an improvement?” If you were around for the jump from 720p to 1080p, you might remember it not being that dramatic. In the case of 1080p to 4K, though, the answer is exponentially so. 4K refers to a resolution of 3640x2160, for nearly 8 million individual pixels, where 1080p, at the same size, would provide only 2 million. 4K, fittingly, can show four times as much detail.
Keeping it to smaller, more understandable numbers, it means that where a 1080p screen would be stuck showing one color, a 4K TV would be able to show a 2x2 grid of four individual colors in that same space.
All of which is to say, that 4K is a massive leap forward in display technology from 1080p. One that used to cost a pretty premium, but is entirely affordable now. At least, unless more streaming services start trying to raise it out of reach all over again.
