Time for Netflix to Embrace Open Source Cloud Partners?

It’s been a year since an open source hacker got Netflix unofficially working on Linux—and much longer since the company first began talking about offering official Linux support, a promise it has never fulfilled. But given the increasing role of Linux in cloud-based entertainment, could it be time for companies such as Netflix to rethink their shrugging-off of the open source world?

The biggest news in the realm of Linux-friendly, cloud-based entertainment of late was Valve‘s decision to become a member of the Linux Foundation. Following Valve’s release earlier in 2013 of a Linux port of the Steam platform for playing cloud-based games, the move signals a growing interest in open source platforms among companies focused on delivering entertainment through the cloud.

So far, Netflix has not been one of those forward-thinking organizations. Rumors have circulated for years of its purported plans to offer a Linux version of the Netflix software, but the company’s own statements have offered little reason to believe the hype. And although the recent addition of support for HTML5-based playback in the Netflix client has sparked renewed speculation about official Linux support, if the past is any indication, that is not a priority for Netflix executives.

But with companies such as Valve and services such as Hulu—a major Netflix competitor that also now supports Linux—investing more heavily in the open source ecosystem, Netflix and other cloud-based entertainment vendors risk ending up on the wrong side of history if they continue to treat the open source world as too small to be worth engaging.

And we’re not talking solely about releasing Linux-compatible clients for playing cloud-based videos and games here. Netflix already has one of those in the form of the “unofficial” Linux client introduced in November 2012, which effectively allows the company to court paying subscribers (like me) who use the service on Linux, even without official support.

The real issue at stake is broader collaboration between entertainment providers and open source partner organizations. Valve has set itself up to collaborate closely with open hardware providers, open cloud developers and other Linux-oriented partners by joining the Linux Foundation and embracing the open source community. In contrast, although Netflix has an unofficial Linux customer base, ISVs and open source developers can’t integrate Netflix into their products without official Linux support for Netflix. That shuts Netflix out of important opportunities.

Previously, when Netflix’s success was tied mostly only to delivering cloud-based video to traditional PCs and some mobile devices, Linux was only a tiny niche. But cloud entertainment is changing, and open source software stands to play a more central role not only in the consumption of cloud content but also its delivery. That’s why Netflix should change its stance.