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Netflix Deflects Rage Over Price Increase
oxide7 writes "Netflix provoked an unprecedented outpouring of backlash across the Internet as the company unveiled plans to raise prices on its movie-rental services. The company said it would raise the Internet-plus-DVDs-in-the-mail plan from $9.99 per month to $15.98 per month late Tuesday sparking protests and rage across the subscriber base. Netflix brushed off the criticism however. 'We knew there would be some people who would be upset,' company spokesman Steve Swasey said. 'To most people, it's a latte or two,' he added."
Canceled as soon as they sent email with their new pricing scheme. Simply not worth that much money, especially with competition from Amazon and Google in the works.
"Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"
And Swasey said, "Let them drink lattes..."
Cyberterrorist hackers are pilfering "a latte or two"...wait...that doesn't sound scary enough.
Step 1: Almost double the price. Step 2: ?? Step 3: Bankruptcy!
and I don't have to sit through a lot of idiotic commercials.
I got here through a series of tubes
Why are so many things justified with the already unjustifiable cost of a Latte? Just as two wrongs don't make a right, two prices that are too high, don't make the second any cheaper.
Most people are probably not really angry because of the money increase, as there are few good rivals (not for long, I hope), but because nothing of value was added to the service to justify the increase.
I bet most people would be happy if the price increase would have arrived with a 100% streaming coverage so people can stop relying on DVDs, or maybe some new cool feature.
Instead, the UI has been somewhat degraded for some, and now the service is almost twice the price. It's not just "some people", I'm sure _most_ people are not happy with the "update".
This isn't about the use of disposable income. It's about having a huge increase in cost with absolutely nothing in return. Now, if they'd said that they'd finally ripped their DVD collection to streaming, or even somewhere near it, I'd listen. Or perhaps they're finally going to get more recent titles in line with Blockbuster or Redbox. But they're not.
This is a pure, unadulterated money grab. So I'm grabbing mine back before they get the chance. Canceled my service yesterday. And per http://www.hackingnetflix.com/2011/07/new-pricing-poll-what-are-you-going-to-do.html, I'm not the only one. Over 1/3 say they are quitting. Explain that to the shareholders, NetFlix execs.
Rule #1 -- Politics always trumps technology.
A couple bucks more is exactly the wrong way for them to be looking at this. It is a 60% price increase (A little less for me on a 2 BluRay plan) but they need to be offering real improvements to service in exchange for this level of price increase, they need to be promising faster new releases on disc and better streaming options too not just now we want 60% more (they could get away with 25% more, but this is excessive.) I'll be dropping to the 1DVD (no more BluRays for a while) w/ streaming plan in response.
But you couldn't get through and that is the only means of communication they have besides a forum. What I would like to propose to them is this. I'll pay a dollar or more a month for the streaming plan which puts me in the maybe a DVD category. For each DVD I rent I pay like 2 or 4 dollars. This allows me to get a DVD if I really want it but also not have a plan I never use. Currently I have the streaming and 1 DVD plan and I have had that DVD for probably 2 months so I really doubt I will opt for the DVD plan on top of the streaming at the current cost, I would just bittorrent for the occasional item. My suggestions seems fair, they get a few extra dollars a month for people that may never use the feature but if people get enough DVDs a month they would be better served just adding the DVD plan. The extra buck or two a month for streaming with possible DVD would be such a low cost that people would probably rather have the option then not, like phone insurance. :)
Netflix is accepting applications for a new company spokesman. Go to Netflix.com/jobs for more information.
As a Canadian, the only deal available to me is $7.99 for streaming only. I looked over the catalog and decided there was enough there to be worth $7.99/month.
So what's not worth $7.99 to Americans, the DVDs or the streaming? Given that your streaming library is more extensive, I assume it's the DVDs. Cancel that and enjoy the streaming.
I plan to stream a few episodes of a series I'm watching over 3G from my hospital bed later today.
A raise of approximately 63%?
Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
Cable TV is still worth it if your household includes someone who is a fan of audiovisually presented national news (e.g. MSNBC, Fox News, HLN) or those live sports that are not on the farmer five but still blacked out online (e.g. ESPN, Versus). If there were a way to get those other than cable TV, I imagine more TV+Internet customers people would be switching from expanded-basic TV to Netflix streaming plus only enough TV to get an Internet line into the house.
I'd be super happy with the streaming only if they have more than a few titles available for streaming. I'd bet there would be a whole lot less rage if they said:
1) we are splitting the plans and raising the rates on the combination. But:
2) we are vastly increasing your streaming offerings so many of you will save money by streaming only.
The streaming offerings are crazy at times. For example they will have three of four disks of a series available for streaming, but they 4th is by mail only. WTF?!
I've got news for them: all the disks are available for streaming guys. And they are available for streaming for free...
Sheldon
I'm cancelling the streaming service. There's tons of stuff available for streaming, but 99.9% of it is absolute garbage.
I don't respond to AC's.
So I'm one of those netflix subscribers that jumped ship. I felt the price increase was more than the service was worth. Netflix picked a very bad time to increase prices, and in particular picked a very very poor way to do it. They could have hiked prices slowly over time, and it would have likely not been enough to really re-evaluate the value I get from them. To raise prices 27% at once was too much to swallow. And worst of all was their assumption that I should automatically be subcribed to their new plans. Good bye, netflix. It was nice knowing you.
FTFS:
The company said it would Netflix raise the Internet-plus-DVDs-in-the-mail plan
What, exactly, does it meant to "Netflix raise" the price of something?
What bothers me most is that this is the second time in a year rates have gone up. My current $8.99 plan will soon be $15! I know this is mostly the studios putting the heat on Netflix, but it's still bullshit to not offer any discount for bundling DVD and streaming as the current "deal" provides. I always liked Netflix because I felt that like Steam, even though they have DRM, they provide a service (instant streaming) that helps balance the equation. Now I can't help but re-think my position as a paying customer when torrents are only marginally more difficult to acquire.
And we have the right to cancel our service if we don't like it. That is how a free society works. I don't like it any more than the next person; I probably will cancel streaming since I rarely use it and it doesn't support my OS of choice (Linux), and I might well switch if I knew of a better value for the things I watch, but I don't, and the higher-priced Netflix is still the best option for me for now. If Amazon and Google come out with some truly competitive offering, at that point Netflix had better think carefully about pricing because a lot of folks including myself might switch . . . or might not, if the prices come back down. Again, that's how a free market works. If you like something, vote for it with your dollars; if you don't, vote for something else you like better instead.
Nonaggression works!
I cancelled netflix last winter after the prices went up 50% in a year...
That simple.
You're going to stop being a customer all over the place.
Deleted
Even if 10% of their customers leave because of this increase they will make it back and then some with a 60% price increase. A competitor might get the suits nervous enough to decide that this was a bad idea $16 isn't exactly an ass raping either.
Knowledge = Power
P= W/t
t=Money
Money = Work/Knowledge so the less you know the more you make
Netflix is not interested in mailing you DVDs for $2 a month. From their point of view, if you have streaming for $8, the correct price for adding mailing is $8. You may think of it as paying $8 for mailing and expect that you should be able to get streaming for an extra $2, but Netflix doesn't think of it that way. If you want them to maintain warehouses full of DVDs and mailers and pay for postage, they want you to pay for all that. Their price is $8.
I gave up mailed DVDs months ago when the price went to $10 and they first started offering streaming only for $8. Now you have the chance to do the same.
I hear that. I feel the same way about my cocaine. This Netflix change has really pushed my budget over the edge.
There is a huge decrease in what is available if we go streaming only.
Out of the 13 DVDs in my queue, only 2 are available by streaming.
Most of those unavalable are Criterion Collection movies by Kurosawa and Ingmar Bergman.
If they remove Babylon5 from my streaming queue before I'm done watching the whole series, I'm going Narn on someone ass.
It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men. -Frederick Douglass
It should be modified to read "To most people who still have good jobs, it's a latte or two."
I use irony whenever I can, but my shirts are still wrinkled...
...it's the non-uniformity of it. If you currently have a streaming-only plan, there's no price increase. If you only watch DVDs and never stream, you could even save yourself $2. But if you do both, you could be paying 60% more. It doesn't really make sense to pay double the price, because the DVDs and streams are competing uses of the customer's time--if I stream a movie this evening, I'm probably not going to also watch a DVD. Ultimately the service isn't that expensive and if they just want to charge more then it's no big deal. But the new scheme seems designed to punish people who only primarily use one half of the service but occasionally use the other. If you most just stream movies but occasionally there's a DVD not available for streaming that you really want to see (and isn't at RedBox), or if you mostly just watch DVDs but someone visits your house and you'd suddenly like to watch a movie without waiting a couple days for it to arrive, then you have to pay a lot of money (relatively) just to dip a toe into the other half of the pool.
It's been my understanding that the works lawfully available over BitTorrent have far lower production values than the works available over Netflix. Or what am I missing?
When it takes 3-4 days to turn around a DVD, $8 for a DVD-only plan simply isn't worth it. The few extra bucks I was spending a month before, then sure.
I guess Netflix would rather not have the money I was paying for that part of the service I rarely used.
I went to eat some animal crackers and the box said, "Do not eat if seal is broken." I opened the box and sure enough..
Netflix is likely getting hammered by the IP owners who have the crazy idea that their reruns of The Munsters are worth much more than reality.
Yes, Netflix is giving us a HUGE increase and nothing in return. So are the owners of the content. Much more so IMO.
What irks me about the price increase has nothing to do with the price of lattes or the fact that we're not necessarily getting anything more in return. It's the anti-competitive behavior. I suspect that the margins on their current pricing were set to be small enough to snuff out Blockbuster. Now, without real competition (incl Amazon's service), they can reap the fruits of their 'sacrifices.'
The blog post that was published about this price increase actually tried to sound surprised that the DVD by mail business hadn't dried up in favor of the streaming side. But with less than half the content available for streaming this should never have surprised anyone. You need both sides of Netflix to make a worthwhile service. I was looking for an actual explanation along the lines of the studios dramatically raising licensing costs for streaming content. Instead they tried to spin it as a "good thing" that they were putting out new subscription plans. The marketing double speak made this rate increase even worse. You can't tell people that paying more for the same service is good for them. You can try to convince them that it is necessary or inevitable and they may understand, but good? Not a chance.
But what I might cancel over is the horrible new website... ...
I mean, the sorting is gone, they lost at least a thousand ratings I'd marked, and apparently no longer have any suggestions for things I should watch for Drama... except for things I specifically have marked as "Not Interested".
The only reason I had Netflix was to play civilly with the MPAA. Netflix has betrayed me, and thus, I go back to the dark reaches of the internet 100% of the time.
What's the opposite of killing two birds with one stone? That's what just happened in this case.
Something witty.
Agreed, though I'm going to cancel my DVD and keep streaming. I only get (got) a DVD maybe three or four times a year, and while the math may not back me up, it was worth it to be able to get one whenever I wanted. Now not so much. I'll drop that service, keep streaming, and if I need something not on "Instant," I'll rent it on Amazon's streaming service.
I'm willing to bet that a significant number of people will drop the service that they use less often (mail or streaming).
... suck it.
Signed,
Your corporate overlords
There is no right to feel safe thru security vaudeville at the expense of everyone's freedom, privacy and tax money.
I know there has been a lot of outrage over Dexter disappearing from instant queue. However, that was the decision made by Showtime, not Netflix. Showtime is going to start streaming Dexter and Californication exclusively via their new streaming service, Showtime Anytime.
I also wonder how much of this price increase will go towards extending their streaming library. I would suspect streaming licenses is more expensive than DVD rental licenses and content producers are increasing what they charge Netflix.
I am not saying that Netflix is without fault, but a lot of the streaming availability issues and price issues may be due to content producers rather than Netflix themselves.
"most people" dont drink $3 latte's or have netflix accounts, they sure dont have a global perspective....
Lots of sibling posts are missing the fact that if 1/3 of their subscribers actually leave (unlikely), they still won't make more money because many of their remaining subscribers are likely to drop either streaming or mail, resulting in a net revenue loss of 20% (gross) per retained subscriber. Chances are, those that will be dropping one side of the service weren't using the other side, so that "extra" service was almost exclusively profit.
I understand why they did it (specter of higher licensing fees), but they probably could have softened the blow a bit. This is the wrong way to boil a frog.
Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
Then why don't they pass up on that money?
So... there are still people who show up to best buy and buy $100 worth of movies. There are A LOT less of these people, but best buy is clearly still in business with a movies music games section. So... netflix at $10 or at $15 a month = 1 DVD, 1/2 a blu-ray (they sometimes stream HD). Why cancel, who cares? People have become way too spoiled with their media to be having this discussion. Blockbuster used to charge like $5 for a dvd and for many that was a weekly ritual. My thoughts: charge $30 a month, stream EVERYTHING (sports, channels, news), and let me cancel my cable subscription in peace.
The price went down didn't it? I'm just no longer paying for something I never used: 1 dvd rental a month.
I'm on the streaming+4 disc plan. It's only going to be costing me another $2/month over what I'm paying now. I rip the discs and watch them at my leisure. The turnaround is pretty fast, so I can get about 32 discs a month (4 at a time, return them twice a week). Cheaper than Redbox. The new price still works for me. I can understand why it doesn't work for everybody.
"Was it a millionaire who said 'Imagine No Posessions?'" -- Elvis Costello
Please deposit a latte or 2 X their number of subscribers to my trading account
Rick B.
Their public relations people clearly have the public relations skills of engineers.
Hardware engineers.
http://alternatives.rzero.com/
I like how the analysts talk about churn and that the increased revenue will make up for the lost customers, but they don't talk about the potential customers the increase may scare off. What's that number like??
I think a modest price increase would have been fine. 10% maybe. But 60%? come on.
'To most people, it's a latte or two,' he added."
No, to most people it's twice the monthly fee for the same service...
In my neck of the woods, basic cable begins at around $80 per month and includes around 10 channels that I would be interested in viewing. That leaves approximately 130 channels that I am paying for but will never tune in to. As far as usable content goes, it's rather like buying artichokes.
My point here is that Netflix, even with its limited "instant view" selection and its new price, is a far better value than the exorbitant and unjustifiable costs of the alternatives that the average household is saddled with. We won't even add the additional rental costs for movies.
My choice was to terminate my $80 cable account and with the recent Netflix acquisition, cancelling my account at Blockbuster, I can live happily with the Netflix combo pack at $15.98.
Web Design Fresno
You get a latte or two when you pay for them. This is a price increase without a tangible difference in the goods and services provided. That's the difference, mr netflix, and it is a signifcant difference, maybe not to you but I do like to, y'know... get more things when I pay more money.
At the same time consumers are facing more and more aggressive bandwidth caps. Not saying your wrong, but streaming HD often will eat through a 100-250GB cap amazingly fast.
OK, it's not twice the amount... whatever :)
Self important adults who act like overly entitled children tend to whine the loudest. Any good parent knows to ignore them in order to do what's right.
As a percentage of the old price, the new price is outrageous. This is like charging $0.75 instead of $0.15 for text messages and then defending it by saying that "to most people, it's like getting extra cheese on their burger".
I guess I'm swimming against the tide. My $19.99 plan just dropped to 15.99, for 3 DVDs out at a time. I've never streamed, and as long as it's Silverlight only, I probably never will.
Maybe now they won't keep bringing up that page of recommendations that lists streaming links only, even though most of the titles are available both ways. Sometimes it's a good recommendation, but if I want to see it I have to remember the title and go searching for it.
Ignorance killed the cat. Curiosity was framed.
I have the 2 DVD at a time plus streaming, which is $16. I'm going to drop down to their 1 DVD at a time plus streaming plan, which should be the same price. It won't be that big of a deal to only get 1 DVD at a time. I use the streaming(SOA, foreign films, vintage Hollywood films, etc;) a lot more... Can't understand why people like Redbox so much. Anytime I look at what it has, there's rarely something I want.
We play the game with the bravery of being out of range
As far as I'm concerned, they just lost a latte or four from me. I am blind, and with the new UI change my access failed--I couldn't read any of the movie titles or the links with multiple screen readers. I was told the development team would look into this, but from what I understand from other people they haven't done so. My account was canceled until it could be fixed, and it looks as if it'll stay that way, what with two price increases this year and broken accessibility.
by contract with their data providers (i.e. the studios), who somehow feel that jerking us around on the availability will somehow cause us to buy things on DVD. also, the contracts are coming up for renewal in 2012, as word has it that some of the studios will be demanding 10 times higher fees.
Netflix has said all along they want to be a totally streaming service at some point in the future. This is no surprise to anyone who's been paying attention.
Personally I watch about 30 movies and tv shows in the time I watch 2 or 3 DVDs. (I work from home often and netflix is on "in the background".) If I drop the DVD service, I get the majority of what I watch now for $2 less or something like that. Win win, really.
People who are outraged about this simply haven't been paying attention or don't have broadband at home for whatever reason. For those people without broadband, the DVD service isn't going away yet, it's just being broken into a separate price plan. Again, cheaper than the "full service" option that allows DVDs and streaming.
"Growing old is inevitable; growing up is optional."
Regardless of where you are on the rage spectrum, you should consider temporarily canceling your plan (but perhaps not your account). If there's a sudden move for the doors (even if most of us were only planning on staying outside for an hour or two), it could send a powerful message. Hold out for as long as you can; if you can't stand it, reactivating your account is easy because they retain everything. But at least take the step beyond anonymous internet rage and cancel your plan, for as long as you can.
I started as a Netflix DVD customer about six years ago. Then I was paying $20/mo for the 3-at-a-time service. At some point, they informed me they were dropping the price down to $17 a month. Cool. Then they added a streaming service for free. There wasn't much on it, there was no Mac support, quality was so-so, but I used it sometimes. Cool. Progressively, the quality of the streaming improved, support was added for tons of set-to boxes and Macs, and the amount of content has been continuously growing. At some point in there the price went back up to the $20/mo I was paying when I first signed up. Oh well. Now I watch far more on instant than on DVD. When I got the email about the latest price increases, I changed my subscription from 3-at-a-time to 2-at-a-time DVDs, and now I'm still paying $20 a month.
I've got better service now than I did six years ago and I'm still paying the same price. I'm not complaining.
From what I've read, NF is going to get pounded by renegotiated contracts with the studios next year. So this move appears to be preparation for "paying the piper". I don't think it was a cash grab.
A cashgrab by proxy is still a cashgrab.
The MAFIAA's greed destroys another company.
I really don't think you want to interfere with the bovine masses access to distratction^W entertainment at this stage in the game. You might end up with another Tahrir Square.
let them drink latte...
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
I get all of my news on-line
Is it presented audiovisually? That's a big sticking point for her. She doesn't want to have to sit at a computer desk and read the news. That'd be a substitute for a newspaper, not TV news. In fact, she connects an FM transmitter to the cable box so that she can listen to MSNBC on a radio in the bathroom while taking a shower.
First of all, I dropped my DVD plan and kept the streaming. I have a RedBox near me and have determined that I would be saving money in the long run. But still, there's a couple of things that bother me about NetFilx.
I have more gripes, but that's the main ones. I'm pretty sure, they decided to split the streaming and DVD plans, so they can eventually increase those prices down the line (Just like the jump from $8 to $9 a few months ago). Personally, I haven't had cable for 4 years or so, so I do appreciate what NetFlix could become, but they seem to have this "screw" the customer attitude as of late.
The real Sig captains the Northwestern. This one captains
This is not the first time that Netflix increases its prices and there is an outrage. And there have always been those predictions that this will be the beginning of the end. So much for that... I will stay a Netflix customer even though my 3 DVD out and streaming will go up by $5 (a 15% or so hike). It just makes good business sense to me to unbundle the mail-order and the streaming departments considering that the latter will go up in price a lot for Netflix.
I got the e-mail yesterday and it looks like I will be paying about $5 more per month. My reaction? "Wow that kind of sucks. Moving on." I use both the DVD and streaming services enough that it is still well worth it to me. Maybe I will go down to one DVD at a time instead of two. If Netflix made a mistake here, it was that they had such low prices to start with. Anyone who has ever worked in any retail or service industry knows what happens when you raise prices, regardless of how justified you are in doing so. People. Go. APESHIT. Nelflix knew this just as well as anyone else. The fact that they still raised rates tells me that there was a compelling reason for them to do so; and don't give me that anti-competitive nonsense. You could just as easily go back to your ad-saturated $70+ a month cable subscription. In any case the source of the greed is most likely the content industry, not Netflix. We are seriously barking up the wrong tree here.
I'm a long time Netflix costumer. I started with the 2 or 3 DVD at home plan and later moved on to the 1 DVD at home plan.
Sometime along the line they gave me free streaming, but it is Windows (them Mac) only. I didn't ask for it
I mostly run linux at home so I don't bother. I get the DVD, dump stream to my disk, watch it later on demand (no sharing with anyone, delete the file later).
I get 2 to 3 DVDs per week, build a huge backog, suspend my membership, resume it later.
They raised my monthly fee a couple of bucks, now they want to recoup the money for the streaming part, and they're given me my couple of bucks back.
I stopped the streaming immediately and for $9.99/month I get to eventually see 8 to 12 movies a month.
Seems reasonable.
You're damn right! Latte? Latte? Arrogant little shit, people (like me) are pinching pennies cancelling even basic cable in the tight economy already trying to keep a "normal" life going with a $10 spot to Netflix. I can go to Redbox, Steve Swasey, you little asshole and get almost 3 DVDs a week! Netflix was mostly to keep my CHILD entertained with kids shows, but fuck it, it's just a latte to you, right?
Sorry for the cursing, but that mother... needs to read The Thank You Economy by Gary Vaynerchuk and get some goddamn manners! This is a less for how NOT to conduct business when everyone has a direct line to 500 friends on Facebook, Twitter, G+, etc! What a retard! I hope the fact that he is spokesman for Netflix will make future employers go, "Ah, so I guess I don't have to ask why you're now looking for new employment. Well, we don't find you qualified for spokesman, but we do have janitorial."
I8-D
$8 for streaming only. I don't think it's a bad deal. I might even get a 3DS to watch it on:
http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2011/07/nintendo-3ds-netflix-app/
Unfortunately, that's the type of attitude for which Blockbuster was once famous, the "sure, some [meaning most] people won't like it, but we get to make the rules" attitude. I've been with Netflix from the beginning. I really like the service. Even the price increase isn't too bad (only a 20% increase over the plan I currently have). It's the attitude that really pisses me off.
I use irony whenever I can, but my shirts are still wrinkled...
I'm already upset by the pop-up and pop-under ads that seem to be on every site when I'm not using NoScript. Due to these, I vowed I wouldn't use them at any price some time ago.
Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
One commenter in the article mentioned that Red Box is looking "better and better these days." I would happen to agree except for the convenience factor. Let Netflix raise their prices. Competition is in the works that will make Netflix somewhat sorry they made a move like this. What might be good for stockholders is not good for Americans as a whole. We have learned this lesson a thousand times over.
If you still want both Streaming and DVD/BluRay mailed to you, then a little planning makes your cost only $7.99/month, thanks to Netflix letting you change your plan at the drop of a hat.
I mainly keep the DVD mailers for the shows that are not and will not ever be streamed in the near future, such as HBO original series like The Wire and Game of Thrones. I don't really need DVDs all of the time, though, so I plan to watch The Wire for a month and cancel my streaming plan, then I plan to watch streaming for a month and switch the plan back to DVD-only.
It's a little bit of a hassle, but it does save you $7.99/month.
Oops. I seem to have started streaming movies to every computer I own 24/7/365.
And churning my DVD orders daily.
Enjoy the licensing fees and postage, dudes.
Is it purely to make more money, or is it to counter cost of shipping, and the cost of licensing what they stream/rent out? As it stands, I'll stick to the pure streaming plan since I tend to like it for just finding something random to watch. If it's DVD only, I tend to just torrent it anyway. Don't really see what the giant fuss is over on Slashdot since I'm sure a majority of you do or can do the same.
They dropped prices a few years ago. Raising them to wean people off the discs-in-the-mail is more or less inevitable. Unlimited streaming is still only $9.99, half what Netflix cost five years ago.
I pay $7.99 and never use a disc. After the change I'll pay $9.99 for streaming only and get more or less the same service. Still less than it was five years ago.
What's the big deal?
semantics are everything!
Unfortunately, none of the other providers have nearly as much variety or volume as Netflix, so a switch is out of the question. The question is Netflix or no movies on demand. I would love to terminate my subscription to make a point, but I also want to watch good movies at my convenience.
I dropped Netflix when they started streaming and refused to support Linux. And no, I won't run Windows for any reason.
I ate the first price increase they did a few months back. This one I'm not going to eat, and definitely not after their "for most people it's a latte or two" comment.
That arrogant asshole, it's not just about the price, but what that price means.
1. They didn't add any value to their service, just like the last one
2. If enough people eat this price increase, why won't they eat another one? If the price has gone up twice, surely it'll go up again.
3. They snuffed out their competition (blockbuster) with a low pricing scheme. Now that they don't have to worry about it, they can hike the price.
Those people who think this is the last price increase are oblivious. You can just smell the arrogance that Netflix is letting off now. How many more "latte or two"'s are you going to eat before you see what's going on?
Comment removed based on user account deletion
I love the arrogance here...... "Company spokesman Steve Swasey said. 'To most people, it's a latte or two,' he added.""
I have no interest in doing business with a company that has people that are that far out of touch with reality.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
Just wait for the DVD content lockers just like the MP3 content lockers. MPAA will shit itself, then lose. Netflix will be fighting for its life then.
I8-D
Comment removed based on user account deletion
"Today, someone got shot. Someone got stabbed. Someone died in a fire."
Yeah, that definitely sounds like what I want to watch.
Besides, why do you want to be pushed news over a one-way connection? Pull the news that you want using the Internet. Pull from a variety of sources across the spectrum so that you're more informed. Read the news when YOU want to, not whenever the TV decides that it's time for you to watch news.
:(){
Seems like the streaming to DVD ratio is grossly out of whack if they're pushing the streaming model as the preferred way to get content. Even though my price didn't increase since I'm on a streaming only plan I would hope they're going to use this new cash windfall to put a heck of a lot more of those DVD only movies out there for me to watch.
I can honestly see where the price increase for a DVD would be justified given the need to maintain an inventory of media, the depreciation due to abuse and loss, and packing and shipping costs. Sadly this is going to mean a loss of jobs as the volume of DVDs shipped goes down.
They're also competing against RedBox other cheap immediate DVD rentals. Would you rather put that new movie on your wait list and hope it shows up soon or walk to the closest RedBox and get it right away? Cable providers are also getting a clue and putting out on-demand movies a lot more quickly. Yes, they're more expensive but they're darn convenient.
I'll repeat my original statement. I want more streaming content. Start taking that catalog of movies and putting them up for me to watching using that streaming plan you're pushing as the primary delivery method.
I especially liked Netflix because the Bluray rentals were a steal. I'd expect bluray fanatics to be unfazed. I don't watch enough of anything to pay for a steep increase so I'll be bumping down to streaming only. The kids use it all day, and aren't exposed to the crap advertising. For recent releases I'll use Vudu since my Bluray player supports it.
$7.99 is way too cheap.
To me that is the most bizarre aspect of this price change. If what you want is just streaming or just DVD, the new plan is very inexpensive. AFAIK, it is the lowest price that Netflix has ever offered. But if you primarily use one and occasionally supplement it with the other, having to pay double the price isn't worth it. So the natural reaction of everyone I know personally, and the vast majority of posts I have seen on the internet is to drop one of the two. It is like Netflix is begging us to give them less money, and presenting it an a manner that is pissing everyone off.
What is even more mind-boggling, is that this ability to supplement one with the other is the one of the biggest advantages that Netflix has over it's competitors, and they just completely threw it out the window.
I understand that the price for streaming would have to increase over time as Netflix renegotiates deals, and the selection increases. I never expected it to be included as a freebee with the DVD service forever, just during it's teething years. But I can't believe that the average person who signs up for both DVD and streaming would use both just as much as the average person who only signs up for one or the other.
If they really believed that the majority of people would keep both plans at the higher price, then their market research people need to be fired.
Let's see... I can pay $17.98 to get 1 Blu-ray title at a time and unlimited streaming with Netflix or I can pay $7.99 for unlimited streaming with Netflix and use Redbox to rent 6 Blu-ray titles a month or 10 DVD titles a month in addition to my Netflix streaming. How is this a good business plan for Netflix to be competitive?
We'll make great pets
Seems to me like they are just writing off their DVD business model (at least in the long-term)--which seems to be a good idea. With media, the money is in streaming more than it is keeping inventory and managing the logistics of physical goods.
For my family, my wife and I turned off cable 3 years ago and have been Netflix/Hulu(+)/Redbox ever since. We have 3 little kids, so we hardly ever go to the theater except for once or twice a year. Now, we'll just get new releases from Redbox and cancel our DVD service with Netflix. I went through our DVD history and found that for DVDs that aren't available via Redbox or streaming from Hulu/Netflix (ie: foreign films & documentaries), nearly all are available through my local library system (Seattle public library). I already pay for the library (taxes), I might as well use it.
Faith is a willingness to accept something w/o complete proof and to act on it. Reason allows you to correct that faith.
If Netflix provided a good amount of streaming connect, I would agree.
They do though, it's been growing a lot. You can find a number of actually newer movies on there now, and they keep expanding the TV show section. The assortment now is huge. With the increase in fees, they can in theory expand it further... how did you think it was going to get better without Netflix spending more?
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
So, I'll preface this by saying I'm probably a bit of an outlier since I'm on a more expensive plan. I was on the 6 DVD a month plan (with free unlimited). I switched to this plan a few months ago when my wife and I started watching more TV shows. We just wanted to make sure we had the next disc ready to go as we were tearing through multiple seasons of a TV series (Supernatural, in case you were curious).
Anyway, the price for us actually dropped. It dropped by less than a dollar, but I was still pretty surprised. I was expecting a big price gouge. Perhaps they've been presenting this process incorrectly. I seem to recall they started adding "free" streaming to accounts a while back. Maybe they should have done a better job of explaining that streaming would be free for a while, and then give people the option of paying for it once it was no longer free.
If all you have are silver bullets, everything looks like a werewolf.
The hate here is from the consumer standpoint. Something that was seen as cheap or a free add on to a previous versions/price point on a service is now costing more. Big Deal. People they have giving you more choice and your overall cost may go up, but for me it is going down.
I would like to point out to all the people that are not looking at this from a business perspective, they have another thing coming. Do you know where 75% of the streaming library came from? A small ($10million) contract with Starz, who had a loophole in their contract that they can resell their content from their network to anyone). Guess what, for $10million and hosting, Netflix paid Starz. The major studios have said publicly (and in their annual reports) that since such a gross injustice has been perpetuated on them, they will not accept less than $150 million dollars from Netflix and are closing the Starz contract loops. So Netflix is in the process of determining how many people are out there paying for each service, so they can go to the negotiating table with numbers. Here are the people doing streaming. Here are the people doing DVD. They have valid figures and they can determine going forward if the $150 million will be a good business decision for them to continue with the streaming. This is pretty simple business 101 folks.
Yes, my content price is going up, it is still cheaper than me going to see 1 movie in a theater if I include popcorn. I wait a few months for it to come out on streaming and I am good. Fine. I don't have to every pay to sit through an Adam Sandler flick - where I can see it at home for 8 bucks a month with 25 other movies and it does not make me angry to go see it.
I just dropped the streaming option.
I can't use it because all of but 2 pc's are linux and those aren't anywhere I would comfortably watch a movie.
So, I saved myself $2 and apparently costing Netflix more because DVDs, what made Netflix Netflix, is getting more expense.
Once someone figures out a better streaming option (Linux utility and better title availability) I'll cut them off all together.
I don't drink lattes, I drink the free coffee at work.....because it's free. I'm not broke either. Little savings here and there are what allow bigger purchases for me.
"Netflix provoked an unprecedented outpouring of backlash across the Internet ..."
Really? I'm pretty sure the Internet is a small toddler who throws fits when it doesn't get it's way. Not every backlash can be unprecedented, nor is this the first time people got vocally (in a sense) angry at a company. The loudest crowd is not always the majority.
I only need the Preview button when I haven't used the Preview button.
They're getting all Star Trek series. They have almost all of Bablylon 5. They have every episode of every Stargate series. They have Lost. They have every episode of Futurama through Season 5. They have all but the current season of Doctor Who (2005 series).
WTF NetFlix have you been looking at?
Maxim: People cannot follow directions.
Increases in truth directly with the length of time spent explaining them
I never rent from them. I hit the bargain bins for $20/4 DVDs and last time even $20/4 Blu-Ray. No, I don't see movies the instant they hit the retailers, but I've got a nice collection built up of DVDs that I *own* that I can watch at any time. That plus the DVR and I can pretty much see what I want. Yeah, I don't have the instantaneous on-demand selections, but for say 1/2 the access to movies I want to see (the other 1/2 I have to wait for), I'd say I'm getting a better deal.
Plus, I've got a stack of DVDs and 15 movies DVR'd already. If I was really excited about seeing a movie, I probably would've seen it in the theater anyway.
I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
For myself I'm not unhappy and I'm with the people that understand their move. The fact is, we've moved from watching dvds lately anyway and although we have cable movies, Netflix has just enough streaming movies and shows to fill that out. I think if you really look at this, it's a wise move as people either now or in the future will be one type of viewer or another. DVDs for some people are very important and for another, it's streaming. That's my $.02. Also we've been spoiled in having both services and truthfully with their offering streaming they've added a new cost to their infrastructure with offering constant streaming of movies on demand, which is a whole new tier IMO. I think they have the right to charge more and it remains a fact that they still have the best selection, and their streaming offerings are growing all the time so.. Ok $.03. ;)
I do understand the initial feeling of price hikes of any kind given the way a lot of companies do this -- (cable companies, telephone...) but they do that without actually offering a heck of a lot more.
$6 is a lotta money, $72/year, or about the monthly cable bill for many folks (but not me; I went OTA). When you figure that Netflix must lose money to any $9.99/month customer who gets more than eight movies per month by mail (postage alone would be $7.04), then they had to do something, right? Perhaps, they should have raised DVD pricing and lowered streaming.
It is amazing how much money we spend to idly pass the time.
Steve Swasey is a disconnected bastard. "Most people" can't afford a fucking latte. And like lattes, Netflix is a luxury that "most people" can live a completely full and satisfying life without. So. The bottom line is this: A sudden 60% price hike is a bad idea for any product or service in any industry, especially when it's common knowledge that your company is profitable and profits are up under existing pricing.
They just lost Babylon 5 about the time they added Star Trek. They have been losing a lot of content lately. I canceled before this latest price hike because a series I was watching disappeared when I was mid season. No warning, nothing. I had to find a torrent to finish. The torrent had better quality.
Why did he just make the value of Netflix the same as 2 lattes?
Does he know the compete against bit-torrent? (ethic and morals of that fact is a different discussion)
It's the worst thing you can say. It makes people feel like they are being talked down to, and it creates an adversarial relationship.
How about:
"Do to contract negotiations with the studios, we will have to raise are prices. We know that is a difficult economic time for everyone, and we certainly don't want to raise are prices right now; however since the studios own the content we have no choice. "
Now its Netflix and their customers in league against the evil studio.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
The worst part is that the big name ISPs are really only using a fraction of their available BW
I wouldn't be so quick to agree. Comcast has been intentionally saturating its TATA upstream.
My old plan was streaming plus one DVD. In my household, I have a disabled sister for whom streaming movies is a godsend, both via the Roku and over her iPad. However, we MUST keep the DVD option because we keep running into situations like happened a couple of weeks ago - I got her into Babylon 5 and we streamed the first 52 episodes. She was really looking forward to each new installment.
Then, all of a sudden, the streaming option for B5 dropped. It became DVD-only content.
This is not the first time this has happened. It's the reason I signed up for the supplemental DVDs in the first place.
So I kinda feel like I'm being taken for a ride, here, but I'll hang on. Even at the new price, Netflix-streamed-to-iPad is such an incredibly wonderful thing for a bedridden person that I won't give it up, nor will I give up the ability to finish out a series when Netflix decides to pull the rug out from under us.
Oh grow up, it's just garbage entertainment.
Nothing but throw-away, "garbage entertainment," is the excuse the geek reaches out for when he pirates another movie or an mp3.
When looked at closely, it is the miror-image of the "just another latte" argument being by used by Netflix --- and the middle class isn't buying in to either one of them.
A company squeezed between pissed off customers, greedy content providers, jilted ISPs, and an insolvent postal service looking for things to cut. I was waiting for the cracks to start showing, and it happens at an all time high! What a great short -- wish me luck!
On a more relevant note, what was so amazing about the price increase announcement was the sales pitch itself... Streaming for $8, DVDs for $8, and both for $16! What a deal! Only a Harvard MBA could think up such an insulting bargain.
I signed up for Netflix less than a year ago. A month or so after I signed up, they raised the rates, and I justified paying more because I was using the streaming service like other people use cable. Now they've raised rates again and I never use streaming anymore because my ISP has data caps. If I blow through the data cap watching HD videos every day, I end up having to pay both of them more now. I'm just going to drop the streaming portion, and then when they raise the rates again in 6 months I'll drop Netflix all together and find something better to do with my time and money.
I'm interested in seeing what happens as Netflix tries to convert it's userbase to streaming only, and ISPs (who are owned by the content owners) start imposing more restrictions on bandwidth. Eventually most of their userbase will leave and Netflix will die... Which is just what the cable companies an studios want.
Go outside and plant some flowers.
Go directly to jail.
Do anything...anything!...where you're producing or growing rather than just consuming.
Then what should one do to unwind after a day of producing?
So what do you do when a friend recommends a movie that's too old for Redbox but not available for streaming on Netflix?
I suspect that executives are banking on "some people" being upset being less than what the gain from having a 60% price hike. As long as they don't lose too many customers with the hike, they'll make more money.
Of course my question is: Are they adding to the back end infrastructure with the increased cost, if they're not doing anything with the lack of added feature, or are they just hiking prices because they think they can?
Awk! Pieces of eight. Pieces of eight. Pieces of seven... ERROR: General Protection Fault. [Paroty Error.]
no new added value. Unless I like a bunch of anime bullshit and cartoons, and childrens programming like the Veggie Tales and stuff. Oh, and B-rated direct to video shit too.
Who do I really blame for this? The greedy motherfuckers at the movie studios. They're the rat bastards we should be directing rage at. Netflix is simply a delivery mechanism.
Netflix Canada:
'Babylon 5: The Lost Tales' is not available but you might enjoy these titles.
'Babylon 5: Thirdspace' is not available but you might enjoy these titles.
'Babylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers' is not available but you might enjoy these titles.
'Babylon 5: In the Beginning' is not available but you might enjoy these titles.
'Babylon 5: A Call to Arms' is not available but you might enjoy these titles.
'Babylon 5: The Gathering' is not available but you might enjoy these titles.
'Babylon 5: The River of Souls' is not available but you might enjoy these titles.
'Babylon 5' is not available but you might enjoy these titles.
The only Stargate they have is Stargate Infinity (an animated series based on the hit movie)
As for Doctor Who, there's two and a half pages of available episodes, and ten and a half of ones they don't have (which includes the new series).
When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
That would be fine, IF THEY GAVE YOU THE LATTE OR TWO. Instead they are charging for the lattes and not giving them to you, but saying that's okay because it's pretty much the same price.
I cancelled my Netflix a long time ago. I started it up again at some point because I got a free month or something. It sure was hard getting them to cancel that free month (it took three paid months before I could stop it.)
Some people are able to find value in paid-for entertainment media. Myself, not so much.
-fb Everything not expressly forbidden is now mandatory.
Actually, as of 1 July, Babylon 5 is off again, unfortunately. Your basic point stands, though.
... how often customers who are prompted to visit their account page decide that they really don't need the expensive option? Three DVDs plus unlimited streaming? Now that I'm asked to make a decision, do I really need three DVDs? Free streaming was a nice perk when I was somewhere with good broadband. But if I've got to pay for it, not only will I drop it, but maybe cut back to two DVDs.
The marketing people who designed the bundles must be rolling over in their graves (the ones shareholders are digging for them as we speak).
Have gnu, will travel.
Business 101 lesson is to treat your most valuable asset, your customer, with respect. Hiking rates 60% all of a suddden and then having you PR say: " 'We knew there would be some people who would be upset" is astoundingly disrespectful and followed up with with "we don't care if your upset" comment. Amazing. If Netfix wants to increase prices in this manner it's their perogative and they intrinsically accept the risk of losing some/many customers not because they can't afford you pricing, but rather because they dislike being treated as dispensible commodities instead of loyal customers. The point is they could have come out and communicated to customers that the existing rate was for a transitional period while the streaming offerings grew in range. Now that point has been reached they wish the separate products to stand alone in pricing so that Netflix is more properly remunerated in the future. You might still lose some customers, but this way you would not alienate many and suffer extremely negative PR. Whosoever signed off on Netflix's approach to this matter needs a long course in remedial learning on how to keep your customers happy and feeling respected and wanted while at the same time adjusting prices upwards. It's NOT that difficult.
Well, the increase I saw changes my bill from 19 to over 27 a month. The Streaming movies are something I can else(any)where on the net as they suck for the most part anyway. Congrats Netflix, by first changing to not releasing DVD's for 28 days and now this, you have made the RIAA, MPAA, Sony etc... all very happy. I'm mad as hell and cancelling, but that doesn't really matter does it as long as the Movie Guys are happy.
"Computers are a lot like Air Conditioners" "They both work great until you start opening Windows"
NMAtv, the animation house in Taiwan, has their say on the Netflix price increase.
They're starting to overlap Slashdot coverage, and they're much better at it.
You're aware the USPS shipping costs have increased about 25 percent in the time Netflix has been in business, aren't you? That makes a huge difference in profits, especially when you're trying to expand your market.
Rent 4 discs from Netflix:
1999: $15.95
2011: $21.99 (no streaming)
increase: 37%
Netflix price increases are more than keeping up with shipping costs.
Their changes means my plan drops by $1.01 a month. Im all for it.
If I could walk that way I wouldnt need cologne.
... IF Netflix had at least same selection as the old video stores. Their current movie selection is terrible. Battle Los Angeles comes out on DVD, and so Battle of Los Angeles comes out on Netflix. This happens *often*, crappy rip-off D grade movies appear on streaming and the good stuff is available only on useless pieces of plastic.
It makes zero sense to me that the industry is hanging on so tooth-and-nail (vending machines? seriously?!) to the model of renting out physical media. If the movie worth the extra quality of having a good copy (e.g. LoTR), I WILL buy a DVD from amazon.
Renting plastic is an idea whose time has come and gone. The video stores all died but nothing has replaced them. No wonder piracy is reaching record levels...
std::disclaimer<std::legalese> sig=new std::disclaimer; sig->dump(); delete sig;
You know I was debating cancelling Netflix since between Hulu and Boxee I can find most of what I want to watch but as soon as I got the email I cancelled.
After that stupid Latte' comment I'm never signing back up... Use Greencine, same pricing and a better choice of movies if you ask me. I can redbox whatever I want that netflix could provide. Greencine at least has some unique suggestions and offerings...
I think this is the beginning of Netflix's end... I will hack their surplus roku's in the future with a smile...
There was a time I used to have latte's in the morning but that's after two layoffs and being underwater in my mortgage.
Here's to you netflix. Looking forward to looking back on your silly red envelopes with fondness...
"Don't fear death... fear not living..." -me
However, I can't stream video; the only reliable ISP for me is Verizon 3G, which is capped at 5G/month and I get pretty close to that without watching any online video at all. So I took the opportunity to add two bucks to my bill and take two DVD's out at a time. It's actually a better deal. I'd rather wait for the mailman and watch a 480p DVD than crappy 360p at best and often 240p if I don't want it to stutter streaming video anyway. And I think as more ISP's start capping (though probably not at the miserly 5G offered by the wireless ISP's) Netflix will probably find its cool plan to get rid of the mail and physical disc expenses backfiring in a major way.
Brackets contain world's first nanosig, highly magnified:[.]
The reason movies go in and out of streaming availability is that the whole licensing practice is based on an obsolete series of tiers that went roughly theatre, cable, VHS, broadcast. A movie licensed in one stream can't be broadcast in another. Now once a videocassette, DVD, or blu-ray is pressed those disks exist and they can be rented regardless of future broadcast licensing deals. But streaming is a bastard child that is generally lumped in with cable. Thing is, when a movie drops out of cable into broadcast, it can't be put on cable any more -- and that might mean it can't be streamed any more either. This is also why some movies are available for streaming before they're on DVD. The whole arrangement is a mess and nobody seems to have any idea how to fix it, since there are thousands of contracts that would have to be rewritten for all the individual properties affected by a sea change in the system.
Brackets contain world's first nanosig, highly magnified:[.]
I'm surprised at all the incensed posters here. I've just done a sampling of about a dozen people around my office and with one exception they all fell into either "I just used the DVDs" or "I watch almost exclusively streaming" camps. I know that Netflix streaming is my primary TV viewing method (I hardly use cable/Tivo anymore at all for some reason) and all of the Netflix discs in my possession have sat untouched for 5+ months (One I've had for over a year). I know people want to have every option available, but they don't seem to actually use them all. Netflix is THE leader in DVD purchases. They drive that market the way Blockbuster used to. The only way they'll be able to pressure media companies into better streaming deals is to stop guaranteeing them huge DVD purchases. And the only way they can do that is to get people who don't care that much about DVDs to stop paying for DVD subscriptions. If you want to get to the future, sooner or later you've got to cut the cord to the past. So long DVDs, you won't be missed.
I'm with you, but for exactly the opposite reason. I'm a streaming fan, not so much a DVD fan. It's going to cost me $2 less a month now!
I wish people would realize that not all great movies were made just in the last year. There are tons of movies I want to watch that were made in the last fifty years that are very good, not to mention television shows I missed or want to watch again.
Whenever I see people lined up around the block to see a movie's premiere, I always want to yell out at them, "Hey, they'll be showing the movie again tomorrow night!"
Dude, you live in Canada. You get the good beer and the bad NetFlix. That's the deal.
Maxim: People cannot follow directions.
Increases in truth directly with the length of time spent explaining them
quoting:
Blockbuster Total Access- 1 DVD + unlimited in-store exchanges 30 day free trial, then $9.99
www.blockbuster.com/helloblockbuster
Blockbuster Rescues Furious Netflix Customers
Netflix Customers Offered Blockbuster Total Access With New Everyday Pricing and Free 30-Day Trial With Proof of Netflix Account
MCKINNEY, Texas, July 14, 2011 â" Blockbuster L.L.C. today began rescuing upset Netflix® customers by launching a limited time, nationwide promotion for all Netflix customers who switch to Blockbuster Total Accessâ.
(trimmed)
As part of Blockbusterâ(TM)s ongoing efforts to provide the ultimate in convenience, choice and value, Netflix customers who switch to one of Blockbusterâ(TM)s two most popular Total Access plans will receive a 30-day free trial.
(more snippage)
"We find it shocking that anyone would raise rates as high as 60 percent,â Kelly added. âoeIn contrast, Blockbuster has worked hard over the past few months to deliver value in entertainment to consumers in this economy and has even reduced in-store movie rentals to as low as 49 cents."
This special offer for Netflix customers is available through Sept. 15, 2011, in participating stores and at Blockbuster's website.
(end quote)
I'm not sure I'm in love with BB but I do like how they're at least kicking netflix when they're down.
--
"It is now safe to switch off your computer."
(negative).
I heard 'dexter' was a good show, so I wanted to see some reviews before adding to my (dvd) queue. the first few pages of user reviews were NOT about the show content but rather about the series going 'poof' and disappearing from instant-watching (er, I mean, streaming.)
there are no dates on the reviews (netflix was 'wise' to strip dates from reviews, sigh) but all the comments refer to the new huge rate increase, so its clear these are from the last day or so.
netflix meltdown begins.
--
"It is now safe to switch off your computer."
...would you be willing to keep your old price, in return for only being able to stream stuff that was available for streaming on January 1, 2011?
They've been constantly adding new content (all of Star Trek!), and that ain't cheap. Netflix streaming has gone from being the last place to squeeze a few extra pennies out of old shows and movies to being the go-to place for anything but the latest entertainment.
ZARDOZ IS NOT GARBAGE!!!!
blog
I would love to just go streaming and never bother with ordering on DVD, except the streaming catalog is so small compared to the DVD offering, no one in their right mind would do it. If you want to watch a TV series on streaming, one or two episodes per DVD are missing on the streaming offerings! I am serious, try to stream an entire season, and you miss an episode here and there, one episode or more per DVD. This forces those who go with Netflix to catch up on a TV show to go the DVD route.
Netflix management must know the weaknesses in what is offered, and is just killing off the company rather than see it collapse by doing something so stupid, no sane person would even suggest it.
As of July 1 Babylon 5 was removed from streaming (I assume due to contractual issues).
The startrek Series are there. After B5 went dark I started watching Voyager (I missed most of it due to being in college at the time).
Looks to me like every trek series is available.
SG-1 and all the movies are available.
Dr Who is available.
Buffy/Angel were available (last checked 9 or 10 months ago).
Geek options ARE there.
Where the seleciton has been BAD lately is movies...horrible.
and watch movies and documentaries all day for what amounts to chump change I think to myself, "how do they make money". I never use the DVD option so I'll probably cut that out.
But really it sucks to wait a day or two for a disk thats probably scratched any way. Screw it, physical media is so last decade.
Netflix is still a good deal -it just sucks when you put the increase in percentage terms.
This sig is not paradoxical or ironic.
to buy Netflix. I'm not happy about it either. My Netflix viewing habits have changed where I mostly watch streaming. When the raised prices back in December 2010 I dropped from the 3 DVDs at a time to 2. So my price point stayed the same. I'll drop to 1 DVD now because there are still things that aren't streaming.
"You'll get nothing, and you'll like it!"
I was a loyal Netflix subscriber for years. They offered good value and even though they were secretly throttling shipments it didn't affect me.
I purchased a Blu-Ray player and enjoyed seeing movies in (sorta) high-definition. Most of the Blu-Ray selections were no more hi-def than the DVD version was.
When they decided to charge an extra fee for Blu-Ray, it changed the relationship. Now they want to charge extra but provide nothing more. Sure, it's not their fault that the studios release DVDs on Blu-Ray disk without remastering.
Now, they want to essentially raise their rates 400% and provide nothing more. That's just plain greedy and after their previous actions, I've decided that they're not worth wasting my time on. Account cancelled, I'll get my entertainment elsewhere..
Of course, enough sheeple will just pay the additional cost and the beancounters at netflix will say "see, it increased our revenue". So they'll be back again in a while to get even more.
If you think a 78% price increase is small, you better not be doing your own taxes. On second thought; please do.
Now that the service costs twice as much I have canceled and will spend less for a Fileserve account and back to Torrents on public wifi. I was willing to buy into the system at a low price, but now the MPAA/RIAA/XXAA has screwed up again by trying to screw the consumer, again.
'To most people, it's a latte or two,'
I don't drink latte, and that's two per month, not just once. This could have been done gradually. Sixty percent is too much on one step.
I cut back from three disks to one to make up for the last price hike. Now they leave me no alternative but to cut off streaming or DVDs. I think I'll just cancel the whole thing, since I've found that I have a hard time being interested in their content, lately."New Releases" is full of yawn most of the time.
Words, words, words
they have for the longest time never been up to date in choices because of the pricing they offered, now they seem to be getting more selections, and needing som e more money to get their library current, and no one seems to understand....if this is to replace movie going and rentals, they need to actually pay more to get more selection, a catch 22 if you will....but all in all i prefer torrent movies!
I totally recognize that this is a stupid reaction, but if service #1 costs X dollars and service #2 costs Y dollars, I want a little lagniappe if I purchase both--the bundle of services #1 and #2 should cost an amount less than X+Y.
If they'd announced that streaming was $9 and DVD's were $9 and the combination would be discounted to only $16, I would have been sad about the price increase but a lot less irked, even though it still would've been $16. At least it isn't $18, I'd think, and I'd pay up. But they made each service $8, and didn't discount the bundle at all, and so it grates on me.
Marketing fail on their part. Rationality fail on mine.
It's not that she necessarily wants Hardball with Chris Matthews, The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell, and The Rachel Maddow Show in particular. She just wants progressively slanted discussion of recent events in U.S. federal politics.
The wife has been after me to sign up for Netflix. Thank you, Netflix, for giving me an excellent reason to avoid your services!
Circle the wagons and fire inward. Entropy increases without bounds.
"Let them drink Latte... My god! The stunning arrogance of the McMansion aristocracy."
Exactly what I picked up on. Also notice the wording of the email one receives about the cost increase:
We are separating unlimited DVDs by mail and unlimited streaming into two separate plans to better reflect the costs of each. Now our members have a choice: a streaming only plan, a DVD only plan, or both.
I detected a little bit of "consumers are sheep" in there. I have a choice? This is good marketing copywrite? It gets my ire up when it needn't. Of course I have less choices now, because the one I had, I liked... and it is gone.
The email goes on to tell me everything except how my current bill is broken down. So I can't easily compare the new "option."
I used to get a bundle and now I don't have a choice. Streaming doesn't have the same options as DVD so both were part of their two-pronged strategy. I use to pay less and now I can't. I have to have both to get the same service.
Look, well played Netflix. You can increase the price. You are the best game in town. We are only talking low $20 for meeting almost all of my movie and tv interest. That's way lower than Comcast. And you know I don't have a very good option and you know you have limited my options so that I must buy two things now. Again, well played. Perfect chess. ... But to phrase it like I'm a child who will find it in my best interest has pissed me off enough that I'm willing to look for lesser services and work harder to work around Netflix. Do they not realize why America gave a big "f* you" to Blockbuster and seated Netflix as the new king? Well I'll tell them here. It isn't just because Blockbuster drained every nick and dime they could in nefarious ways. It's because they gloated about it and told us to drink less lattes. There's no reason Blockbusters shipping and new plans shouldn't have killed Netflix. Well, except that consumers aren't actually children after all.
I'll probably keep Netflix for the convenience of the service and the price, but now, unnecessarily, they are on watch with me! And this latte crap didn't help at all. As soon as I see any reasonable option, I'll be more than happy to read up and take a chance.
Why didn't they whine about their