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[Faustina Bartsch]

More than 200 titles are unavailable to watch on this subscription like Paddington, Oblivion and all of Daniel Craig's James Bond movies. But Netflix lets you know which ones are off limits by marking them with a lock symbol and a note: "Unavailable on Basic with Ads due to licensing restrictions." Back in October, the company said it's working on it -- meaning the absence of titles -- so be aware that what's limited today may not be in the future. When I clicked on the tile for a locked show or movie, I received a sales pitch urging me to upgrade to an ad-free plan. Though it's an upsell, it's convenient if you really want to watch a piece of content in that moment. Paywall be damned!

Upon sign-up, I noticed Netflix automatically created a Kids Profile on my account, which I guess is because I clicked on a few animated selections while I curated my new account's main profile. That's not necessarily a bad thing, because there aren't any commercials for content under the kids' profile.

While the Kids Profile is ad-free, regular profiles have some ad-free content too. Plenty of animated shows and movies do not include commercial breaks, and there are select titles -- family-friendly and beyond -- that you can watch without interruption.

Examples include Avatar: The Last Airbender, Community, The Sea Beast, The Christmas Chronicles and Good Witch. The Bodyguard had a preroll ad, but no ads during the rest of the movie. Are you wondering whether it's better to stream something on the kids' profile to avoid ads? Not necessarily. So far, I haven't been able to find any animated titles with commercials. The same goes for Nickelodeon shows like Victorious and iCarly.

I'll warn there's really no way to tell which series or films lucked out, but if you start playback, just look for the yellow dots on the progress bar to see how many commercial breaks to expect. Like YouTube, those dots will either be scattered or nonexistent.

You may want to know if the streamer skips ads for its own branded content, or at the very least slips in a smaller amount. Short answer: No. Netflix does not give preferential treatment to its own content. Your favorites like Stranger Things, The Witcher and Cobra Kai all have ad breaks, but the amount and frequency varies.

When I streamed Enola Holmes 2 -- which was released on Nov. 4 -- there was only a 30-second set of commercials before the film and no ads during the movie. Netflix announced that new films would not feature ads, so this was unsurprising. Season 5 of The Crown, however, kicks off with five ad breaks... including a preroll.

When Netflix outlined its ad program, the streamer explicitly stated that we'd see 4 to 5 minutes of ads per hour of content. This is accurate. During a one-hour episode of Love is Blind, I encountered a 30-second round before the show started and three more breaks during the episode. The first commercial break was 75 seconds long and had four ads. The second break had three ads that ran for 75 seconds, and the final round lasted 75 seconds with three ads. That brings the total to just over 4 minutes.

Shows like Supernatural and Jane the Virgin had a preroll and three, 60-second ad breaks in the middle of their 40-minute episodes. Altogether, that's three-and-a-half minutes. For shorter TV show episodes like Cobra Kai and Naruto, there were three ad breaks: one 30-second spot before the show started and two in the middle that lasted for 60 seconds. That's 2.5 minutes. A two-hour movie like Mr. and Mrs. Smith had an ad break before the film and four more throughout that lasted for 75 seconds each.

As far as ad variety, I powered through at least 20 TV shows and movies on this Basic with Ads plan. The commercials were from brands like Discover, Chipotle, Garnier, Experian, M&Ms, Boar's Head, Chevrolet, Prada and Tiffany. While I didn't see the same ad twice during an episode or movie, I began to see the same ones daily or when I watched a different title.

Among the top titles on the platform this week are 2022's The Bad Guys and The Secret of the Greco Family. Both are unavailable on this plan, and if you're a fan of Labyrinth or Knight Rider like me, those are also off the table. If you have kids, they won't be able to watch Sing 2, Gabby's Dollhouse, Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts or a slew of DreamWorks shows, including the Tales of Arcadia series. Guess what else is blocked? Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous and Minions & More content.

Couple the missing content with commercial breaks, and the $10 Basic plan could be looking like a better deal. Why? You get access to Netflix's full catalog on the higher-priced subscriptions, plus you won't be tempted to succumb to Flo's push to get you to switch to Progressive or Beyonc's musical campaign for Tiffany & Co. While the ads aren't beating you over the head in length or repetition, spending the extra $3 to go ad-free could be the way to go.

It may not have the sheer number of new titles each month as Netflix but Prime Video's focus on quality (in two meanings of the word) over quantity has won me round. Of course, Netflix is still often the place to watch some of my favourite movies, but Prime Video's hit rate is in my opinion, much higher. Here are 3 reasons why I think it's now the better option.

Perhaps that's a bit harsh on the big N, it has produced some fantastic shows and even Oscar-winning movies like All Quiet On the Western Front and Marriage Story, but I feel like a big proportion of releases now are either trashy reality TV (which has a place) or identikit teenage dramas.

In recent years Prime Video has had exclusive access to some of the best films released. Current best picture winner Everything, Everywhere, All at Once is only streaming on Prime Video for example, as is The Whale - the movie that won Brendan Fraser an Oscar and Triangle of Sadness (another Oscar nominee). Some movies are even making the switch from Netflix to Amazon, with the beautiful The Peanut Butter Falcon now instead on Prime Video.

When it comes to series, I'd have to give the edge to Netflix still (providing they don't cancel my favourites), but Amazon has been going big in this area recently. Spy thriller Citadel is one of the biggest budget TV shows ever made while there are also blockbuster fantasy series like Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and The Wheel of Time. The Marvelous Mrs Maisel and The Boys are fantastic but my favourite Prime Video exclusive is US Office creator Greg Daniels' Upload.

Also in Amazon's favour is the fact that the standard Netflix plan will only offer up to 1080p streaming. If you have one of the best TVs you'll have to upgrade to Netflix Premium (15.99/ $19.99) to make the most of your setup. Prime Video offers 4K resolution at no extra price.

As a younger service, I feel like Prime Video is still in its experimental phase. Netflix has gone too mainstream now. Prime Video has a massive selection of titles that have much quirkier, less commercial premises.

Licorice Pizza is a unique must-watch directed by Paul Thomas Anderson that features the tensest scene I can remember in any movie, while Guns Akimbo has a truly unhinged premise. Daniel Radcliffe wakes up in his dressing gown and slippers with a pair of guns bolted to his hands, how could you not want to check that out?

If you're after something a bit out-there Prime Video is a wonderful world of weird.

This process is what we refer to as cropping. It was very common on older TVs, as their shape was more like a square and not like the current batch of widescreen flat-screen TVs. When movies aired, often the ratio would get altered: a widescreen movie would have the sides removed so it fit into the screen. This means you sometimes would see the following message before a movie:

We want to offer the best picture and provide the original aspect ratio of any title on Netflix. However, unfortunately our quality controls sometimes fail and we end up offering the wrong version of a title. When we discover this error, we work to replace that title as soon as possible.

There are two conventional ways to attract Netflix. You can cross your fingers and hope your film gets accepted to significant festivals, builds lots of buzz, and garners the attention of someone from Netflix. This rarely happens.

The challenge is this. Any good distributor or sales agent hears pitches many times a day. As a result, you'll need to find creative ways to make your film rise above the noise and get noticed. For example, maybe you have a popular social media account, a robust list of email subscribers, or a super engaging trailer on YouTube.

If you can show how your film has been received online, the buzz it has created, and how it has engaged with its target audience, you'll make your movie more of a no-brainer for acquisitions. Here are some questions to help get you thinking:

If other movies on the Netflix platform are similar, you'll need to figure out how to make your film unique from the competition. How does your movie fill a gap in the Netflix library? And how will your movie help Netflix retain current subscribers or attract new subscribers?

Once you have a well-rehearsed pitch showcasing your film's value, your next step is to reach out to the distributor or sales agent and make the pitch. Assuming the distributor or sales agent has an ongoing relationship with buyers from Netflix and other platforms, they will know quickly if they think they can sell your movie.

If your film gets pitched to Netflix, it will take a few weeks to get a response. If the folks at Netflix are interested, they will negotiate directly with your distributor or sales agent. Most deals typically pay a licensing fee for one or two years.

Netflix generally seeks exclusive deals. They usually want to be the only SVOD platform where viewers can stream your film during the licensing period. Assuming you're working with a good distributor, understanding this can help you set realistic expectations and determine if the deal is worthwhile.

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