I’m one of the thousands of Netflix customers who were outraged by the movie rental giant’s decision to change its pricing structure. No one likes the idea of paying more for less, and no matter how you slice it, that’s exactly what Netflix is asking its customers to do. Begrudgingly, I’ve decided to drop the DVD portion of my Netflix service and go with streaming only, which cuts my movie-watching options in half. On a personal level, it may take a while for me to get over it. On a professional level, however, I must admit that Netflix is making a smart business decision.
I don't really think Netflix thought this out. But I am not outraged over their decission. I have already become disappointed in Netflix before their price increases. Their content is old series reruns and older movie releases. They already signed with big movie distributors to wait longer after a DVD release to be able to distribute movies. Somehow, Netflix has not been able to garner the right contracts and now they think that raising prices to get more funds will somehow help. I doubt it, because I think they will lose a lot of customers.
there are 2 problems with netflix's decision:
1. They did not put all 100K titles online before hiking the price for mailed DVDs.
2. It is a lot more difficult to "manipulate" the movie online... fast forward, etc...
Netflix did not plan this correctly but they are the only show in town...
Cheers
I enjoy the streaming movie selection offered by Netflix, but that is just me. It works well, is well priced and fits my personal tech.
I am loath to give up my Netflix DVD by mail for access to more current movies or just ones not in their streaming library. (There are a whole bunch only available on DVD including some of my favorite English shows.)
The possibility (probability?) of streaming being my only access bothers me for two reasons:
1) I cannot access it without a (fast) web connection. (Camping, visiting off the grid, etc.)
2) ISPs all seem determined to cap both bandwidth and data. My current Cox plan does not have any caps yet so I couldn't tell you how close I push any potential limits, but this concern inhibits my interest in 'cloud' services.
I am careful to meticulously and clearly tell clients doing technology planning or evaluation to be very concerned about data caps, speed pricing and data control (as in moving from one vendor to another as well as the danger of a 'Google' style implosion of their digital world).
Every model I sign off on has to have a 'local' (non cloud) back-up of all critical records plus provisions for running their business in a non-cloud mode.
And every plan must include the projected impact of being subjected to Comcast style data / speed limits and costs.
I agree with @ssarull
Netflix's streaming content is very limited. Yes, they are offering unlimited, while Walmart is charging per view. But the only reason I need the DVDs from Netflix is the streaming selection is poor. I'd rather pay per view with Walmart, who is streaming newly released, than old selections.
I think people would welcome streaming with open arms when the content selection mirrors DVDs. I would much prefer to stream onDemand than wait for a new disc to arrive.
But looking at their current "Netflix Top 100" movie list, less than 10 were available to stream. I simply cannot understand why a company would be pushing hard on their loyal customers towards an inferior product alternative.
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Netflix Is Dragging Its Kicking, Screaming Customers to a DVD-Free World
Posted by: Sidney Hill July 29, 2011 05:00 AMI’m one of the thousands of Netflix customers who were outraged by the movie rental giant’s decision to change its pricing structure. No one likes the idea of paying more for less, and no matter how you slice it, that’s exactly what Netflix is asking its customers to do. Begrudgingly, I’ve decided to drop the DVD portion of my Netflix service and go with streaming only, which cuts my movie-watching options in half. On a personal level, it may take a while for me to get over it. On a professional level, however, I must admit that Netflix is making a smart business decision.
1. They did not put all 100K titles online before hiking the price for mailed DVDs.
2. It is a lot more difficult to "manipulate" the movie online... fast forward, etc...
Netflix did not plan this correctly but they are the only show in town...
Cheers
I am loath to give up my Netflix DVD by mail for access to more current movies or just ones not in their streaming library. (There are a whole bunch only available on DVD including some of my favorite English shows.)
The possibility (probability?) of streaming being my only access bothers me for two reasons:
1) I cannot access it without a (fast) web connection. (Camping, visiting off the grid, etc.)
2) ISPs all seem determined to cap both bandwidth and data. My current Cox plan does not have any caps yet so I couldn't tell you how close I push any potential limits, but this concern inhibits my interest in 'cloud' services.
I am careful to meticulously and clearly tell clients doing technology planning or evaluation to be very concerned about data caps, speed pricing and data control (as in moving from one vendor to another as well as the danger of a 'Google' style implosion of their digital world).
Every model I sign off on has to have a 'local' (non cloud) back-up of all critical records plus provisions for running their business in a non-cloud mode.
And every plan must include the projected impact of being subjected to Comcast style data / speed limits and costs.
Netflix's streaming content is very limited. Yes, they are offering unlimited, while Walmart is charging per view. But the only reason I need the DVDs from Netflix is the streaming selection is poor. I'd rather pay per view with Walmart, who is streaming newly released, than old selections.
But looking at their current "Netflix Top 100" movie list, less than 10 were available to stream. I simply cannot understand why a company would be pushing hard on their loyal customers towards an inferior product alternative.