Washington, D.C. (November 20, 2008) -- On October 30, I gave Netflix one month to get its act together. (See: Blu-ray Owner to Netflix: Clean Up Your Act or Else!)
Well, I don't have to wait any longer to see it's not going to happen.
Netflix, you're outta' here!
Yes, as a Blu-ray owner, I am discontinuing my subscription to Netflix immediately -- and I would suggest any Blu-ray enthusiast do the same. Based on my experience -- and the observations of countless TVPredictions.com readers who have sent me angry e-mails -- the online DVD rental service is painfully slow in sending new Blu-ray releases to its customers.
For those not familiar with Netflix's service, customers rent movies by placing them in Queues, a list of your rental choices. In theory, your first choice in the Queue is sent to you when you mail back a previously viewed disc.
However, time and time again, Netflix tags new Blu-ray titles such as Tropic Thunder, The Incredible Hulk and The Strangers with the dreaded "Long Wait" or "Very Long Wait" label, meaning it can take weeks before the title is mailed to you.
Swanni's mailbox rarely was filled with Blu-ray titles.
In the last three weeks, I have only been able to rent two Blu-ray releases -- The Godfather and Baraka. And I didn't get Baraka for about a week after I ordered it. (The Godfather was available immediately.)
Considering that I paid $18 a month for my Netflix subscription, which allowed me to have three different discs out at the same time, you would think that the company would work harder to get my Blu-ray choices to me in a timely fashion.
Particularly since Netflix recently began charging Blu-ray subscribers an extra $1 a month for the 'privilege' of renting high-def discs!
Okay, I understand that it costs more to make copies of Blu-ray titles. So I can also understand why Netflix faces a challenge in stocking enough Blu-ray discs for its roughly 500,000 Blu-ray subscribers.
But you would think that all those extra dollar bills each month would be dedicated to that task, wouldn't you?
However, there's no evidence that Netflix is doing anything to get more copies of Blu-ray titles. In fact, based on my experience, the Blu-ray delays have only increased since the company began charging Blu-ray owners an extra $1 a month.
So where is that money going?
Is it possible -- just possible -- that Netflix is using that extra Blu-ray revenue to further its efforts to offer streaming standard-def videos directly to the home over the Net. (The company is now offering its streaming service on the XBox 360 video game console, the Roku set-top and the LG Electronics set-top.)
Could it be that Netflix doesn't really believe in Blu-ray? That it's only using the Blu-ray audience to generate more revenue so it can launch new divisions?
Well, only time will tell. But I'm not waiting for the answers.
Starting today, I am signing up with Blockbuster Online. And in the coming weeks, I'll report back here on how it performs.
Update: I received an e-mail Thursday afternoon (Nov. 20) from Blockbuster Online saying that my first Blu-ray rentals (The Incredible Hulk and The Strangers) have just been mailed to me.
Comment on this article!
Well, I don't have to wait any longer to see it's not going to happen.
Netflix, you're outta' here!
Yes, as a Blu-ray owner, I am discontinuing my subscription to Netflix immediately -- and I would suggest any Blu-ray enthusiast do the same. Based on my experience -- and the observations of countless TVPredictions.com readers who have sent me angry e-mails -- the online DVD rental service is painfully slow in sending new Blu-ray releases to its customers.
For those not familiar with Netflix's service, customers rent movies by placing them in Queues, a list of your rental choices. In theory, your first choice in the Queue is sent to you when you mail back a previously viewed disc.
However, time and time again, Netflix tags new Blu-ray titles such as Tropic Thunder, The Incredible Hulk and The Strangers with the dreaded "Long Wait" or "Very Long Wait" label, meaning it can take weeks before the title is mailed to you.
Swanni's mailbox rarely was filled with Blu-ray titles.
In the last three weeks, I have only been able to rent two Blu-ray releases -- The Godfather and Baraka. And I didn't get Baraka for about a week after I ordered it. (The Godfather was available immediately.)
Considering that I paid $18 a month for my Netflix subscription, which allowed me to have three different discs out at the same time, you would think that the company would work harder to get my Blu-ray choices to me in a timely fashion.
Particularly since Netflix recently began charging Blu-ray subscribers an extra $1 a month for the 'privilege' of renting high-def discs!
Okay, I understand that it costs more to make copies of Blu-ray titles. So I can also understand why Netflix faces a challenge in stocking enough Blu-ray discs for its roughly 500,000 Blu-ray subscribers.
But you would think that all those extra dollar bills each month would be dedicated to that task, wouldn't you?
However, there's no evidence that Netflix is doing anything to get more copies of Blu-ray titles. In fact, based on my experience, the Blu-ray delays have only increased since the company began charging Blu-ray owners an extra $1 a month.
So where is that money going?
Is it possible -- just possible -- that Netflix is using that extra Blu-ray revenue to further its efforts to offer streaming standard-def videos directly to the home over the Net. (The company is now offering its streaming service on the XBox 360 video game console, the Roku set-top and the LG Electronics set-top.)
Could it be that Netflix doesn't really believe in Blu-ray? That it's only using the Blu-ray audience to generate more revenue so it can launch new divisions?
Well, only time will tell. But I'm not waiting for the answers.
Starting today, I am signing up with Blockbuster Online. And in the coming weeks, I'll report back here on how it performs.
Update: I received an e-mail Thursday afternoon (Nov. 20) from Blockbuster Online saying that my first Blu-ray rentals (The Incredible Hulk and The Strangers) have just been mailed to me.
Comment on this article!
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Phillip Swann is
president and publisher of TVPredictions.com. He has been quoted in
dozens of publications and broadcast outlets, including CNN, Fox
News, Inside Edition, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The
Chicago Tribune, The Financial Times, The Associated Press and The
Hollywood Reporter. He can be reached at swann@tvpredictions.com
or at 703-505-3064.
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