A shout out to the video streaming services and their desire to upgrade content to 4K and higher resolution standards.
Even though that focus might sound directed to only premium users and future adoption, positive results are emerging and it seems that everyone is benefiting, even now.
Historically, when you thought about streaming from services such as Nexflix or Amazon; most likely you weren't thinking "Good gravy, I wish there was more 4K content." You were probably just hoping the picture quality looked as good as your cable TV, and hoping no one finds out you ate an entire bag of Doritos over a few hours of J.J. Abrams' Lost. As more 4K and full 1080p content is becoming available, it's raising the bar for all new entrants into the streaming world while also changing consumer perspective on acceptable streaming image quality.
What was once considered tolerable quality on Netflix 5 years ago would now be concidered unacceptable. As Bob Dylan once wrote, "The times, they are a-changin'." Netflix has heard that song, and is doing a great job of increasing the overall quality of their streaming content. They know we like our pixels, and the quest for more pixels won't end anytime soon, even if pixels aren't the most important factor. I'll say it just once more- pixels.
I have yet to see a "high def" internet stream look as good as a Blu-ray, but those days they are definitely getting close. More importantly, if you stream 4K content and it translates to a quality level similar to that of 1080p Blu-ray, everyone still wins! Regardless of the fact that streaming still doesn't quite give you the quality of equivalent hard media (for the moment), definite kudos the streaming services for upping their game. Their average content is looking pretty fantastic these days, and all users are benefiting from a boost in overall image quality.