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kanopy.com
These days, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed by TV and movie streaming services. It can be hard to keep up. It seems as if every other week, there is a new premium streaming service being released. Every film studio and TV network is just now trying to get a piece of the premium streaming pie. I can't say I blame them either? it is one of the most lucrative industries of recent memory, bringing in billions of dollars every year.
This is great news. We always have more options when it comes to our entertainment. In fact, this could be said to be the best time ever to be a movie or TV lover. One thing is for sure: we have never had so many great options available to us, both with respect to the many different ways we can watch movies and TV, as well as the number of high-quality original movies and TV series that are out there.
The abundance of streaming services and their desire to release exclusive, original content has resulted in a high bar for quality when it comes to movies and TV shows. Every streaming service wants to put out the best content, so competition has driven up the quality of these releases. Capitalism has been good for this because it's resulted in some of the best movies and TV shows ever made.
Despite the benefits of having so many high-quality streaming sites, there are some drawbacks. For instance, trying to figure out which ones will be the best for you can be a daunting task. Additionally, it can be expensive to have several premium streaming sites? subscription fees at one time (time to start sharing those passwords!).
This is why I'm so excited about reviewing Kanopy. One reason is that it's a free movie streaming site. But that's not all--there are lots of those around. There are also a few aspects of Kanopy that make it different from any other free movie streaming site I've ever heard of.
For example, Kanopy is a streaming site that looks, functions, and feels like a premium streaming site. It has an excellent selection of movies to choose from, it looks amazing, and it functions flawlessly.
Kanopy is different from other streaming sites because it focuses on education and thought-provoking content. It's like the anti-Netflix, because instead of churning out content with the most widespread pop appeal, Kanopy's mission is to provide its viewers with only critically acclaimed and award-winning films and documentaries. Kanopy's whole thing is quality and meaningfulness.
This is probably why, with their unique business model, Kanopy is only available through your public library or university. Kanopy may be a free movie streaming site for you, but it is far from free in actuality. If your college or library offers Kanopy, they pay for the licensing fees of each title made available. In some cases, titles are made available on a pay per view basis. Nevertheless, Kanopy can be an awesome way to access films - whether you are a student or a teacher - that can help to expand your mind and supplement your coursework (or lifelong learning).
I am so happy to be able to share Kanopy with you all. I know that not everyone will enjoy it, but those of you who are interested in it will love it!
History
Kanopy, a company founded in Scarborough, Australia by Olivia Humphrey, originally functioned solely as an educational tool for colleges and universities. Although Kanopy began in Western Australia, its headquarters today are in San Francisco, California.
Humphrey stayed on board as CEO of Kanopy for a long time, much longer than founders usually stay around when they have founded a company as successful and profitable as Kanopy turned out to be. So unique was Humphrey?s contributions to Kanopy, as well as the worlds of streaming and education tools, that the International Documentary Organisation published a comprehensive interview with her that traces Kanopy's history and its aspirations.
In October of 2019, Humphrey stepped down from her position as CEO of Kanopy. She was succeeded by Kevin Sayar. And to this day, Kanopy remains one of the most widely used and beloved educational streaming resources. I wish more people could take advantage of Kanopy's great collection of critically acclaimed movies, documentaries, and foreign films.
Design
I haven't used Kanopy, but based on what I've heard, it seems to be sleek, neat, minimalistic, and user-friendly. In terms of streaming sites, I wouldn't say that Kanopy is particularly unique or different. It has borrowed the standard streaming site layout, offering a bunch of different genres and categories for browsing (each with its own side-scrolling capabilities). However, I would argue that perhaps Kanopy has perfected this familiar Netflix layout.
I really like how each of Kanopy's browsable categories is so much slimmer than usual. This makes for a cleaner, more efficient browsing experience. Plus, it allows Kanopy to fit more sections onto the page without the end result looking too cluttered or cramped. The top of the page still maintains its minimal look, with only a search bar and dropdown menu (making it easy to browse all of Kanopy's genres available).
As far as the media player component of Kanopy is concerned, the site designers seemed to have turned more to YouTube for inspiration than Netflix. To the right of the video, you'll find a list of related or recommended videos. Below the video is a ?people who watched this also watched ?? list, and further down below that, you will find a comments section. Although I am typically not a huge fan of this sort of layout, I do think that it works well for an educational streaming site such as this one (I like how browsable it is).
Content and Features
As I just touched upon, Kanopy has a few social features, such as comments. You can also share films, add them to playlists, and create exportable clips. All of these features add up to make Kanopy the ideal educational media tool. If I were a teacher, for example, I might assign my students homework to watch a movie and then share it on Kanopy with a comment.
I might find it useful to export just a 5-minute clip from a movie to add to a lesson (without having to share the entire film). Kanopy also allows you to automatically generate transcripts of films or scenes. Also, instantly cite the film in your paper with Kanopy's citation tool.
Kanopy is a streaming site that focuses on providing thought-provoking, informative, and literary films. It has award-winning documentaries, critically acclaimed classic movies, and fascinating foreign films. If you enjoy learning (or teaching), Kanopy is the perfect site for you!
Mobile and Desktop Experience
Kanopy offers a top-notch desktop user experience and an equally great free movie streaming mobile app. The app is just as clean, smooth, user-friendly, and sleek as the browser site. Forget to watch your assigned movie for class? No problem! Skim through the important parts on your phone while you walk to class! Kanopy is available on both iOS and Android devices.
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