It is the flagship drama that had fans flocking to Netflix to watch Francis Underwood scheme and murder his way to the White House.
But many UAE residents are disappointed again that the highly anticipated fifth series of House of Cards will not be available for weeks, after the streaming portal sold the rights to air it first to broadcaster OSN.
Such was the furore that Netflix on Wednesday responded with an Arabic-subtitled monologue by actor Michael Kelly – who plays ruthless sidekick Doug Stamper – reassuring viewers it would be available soon.
OSN, which screened the new episodes on Monday, has the rights to broadcast the show in the UAE, while Netflix users will have to wait until the end of this month to watch it on the app.
Netflix launched in the Middle East last year, making hundreds of TV shows and movies available to a local audience.
But it sold the rights to broadcast House of Cards and Orange is the New Black to OSN before that to broadcast on television and on OSN Play.
“Let me explain to you why, instead of knowing what happens in the election, you are seeing this. Two words: Licensing rights,” Kelly said.
“Basically that is the right to air a show in a certain region. I also know that you are thinking we had over a year to get those rights, it is not that simple.
“Getting licensing rights is a lot like passing a bill, it takes time and a lot of negotiations, I mean even Frank took two whole seasons to become president and we all know how he got there.
“I am not expecting everyone to show unwavering loyalty – after all not everyone is Doug Stamper – but to those of you who find it in themselves to remain so, I promise your loyalty will not go unnoticed. Choose wisely.”
Stamper fights to pass laws by day and furthers the ruthless climb to the top by president Underwood (played by Kevin Spacey) by night.
Fans were frustrated that they will not be able to watch the show at the same time as millions of other viewers.
“It is disappointing that Netflix does not treat its viewers here in the Middle East the same as it does across the rest of the world, especially as it is a Netflix-produced show,” said Irish media professional Patrick Ryan, who had planned to binge watch the series this week on Netflix.
Dr Affaf Gharatkar, a dentist in Dubai, also felt let down.
"It is plain disappointing not being able to watch House of Cards," Dr Gharatkar said.
“Whatever the reason – it seems to be money – it is unfair to us viewers that now people watching on OSN will post spoilers on social media and the show won’t be the same again.
“It’s a shame, really.”
Another fan, Alok Kumar Puri, said he would not subscribe to OSN to watch the show.
Signing up to OSN's Ultimate Entertainment package that includes the channel broadcasting House of Cards will cost from Dh129 a month.
A Netflix Middle East subscription ranges between Dh30 and Dh45 a month, which includes a one-month free trial period.
“It is unfortunate that such licensing issues force honest viewers to look for pirated sites,” said Mr Puri, 54.
“It is a lose-lose for OSN and Netflix.
“Better sense should have prevailed and they could have done a deal to show on both platforms.”
But it was not the end of the world for some viewers.
"It is horrible that I cannot watch House of Cards on Netflix," said fan and engineer Salman Khan, 28.
“Although it is annoying it is not the end of the world for me. Netflix does have some issues with other TV shows here too and they should sort it out,” he said.
“It is not a big problem, but it’s like downgrading from business class to economy – I am going to fly anyway.”
This article has been updated for clarity.
mmannan@thenational.ae
