Here's Why Mark Cuban Doesn't Think Netflix Will Kill Cable Anytime Soon

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MarkCuban

Business Insider

Mark Cuban at Business Insider Ignition

Will streaming video services like Netflix ever replace cable TV?

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Maybe someday, but billionaire investor and owner of the Dallas Mavericks Mark Cuban doesn't think it will happen any time soon. He posed an interesting argument why the two mediums need one another.

Although consumers have the luxury of watching TV shows on demand at any time through Netflix, those shows are only popular because they appeared on cable first. According to Cuban, content that appears on Netflix still "defines its worth" by appearing on TV first, with the exception of a few shows such as "House of Cards."

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"With the exception of five or six shows, their brand was established somewhere else," he said.

"We will evolve to a point where people will get what they want, where they want, when they want, but there will always be a front-end presentation," Cuban said on stage at Business Insider's Ignition conference.

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Competition from services such as Netflix benefits cable TV, too, Cuban said. The rivalry between Netflix and cable pushes networks to create higher quality content.

"As long as TV strives to compete, you'll keep getting better shows," Cuban said. "We get 'The Walking Dead,' we get these better shows, and then they get to Netflix."