Netflix Alternatives?

[Guest GT_Rat]

The big problem I see on the horizon is that the ISPs are going to want a piece of the pie as people dump cable-type services (usually the subscribers ISP) and then proceed to eat up said ISPs bandwidth consuming what amounts to a competitive product (Netflix).

Why do you think ISP's want to be able to selectively throttle or block content on their networks? Pay up Netflix and you get full bandwidth. Don't pay and you get throttled or blocked entirely. Media companies will have to pay for access to Comcast's (or any other ISP's) customer base instead of Comcast having to pay them for broadcast rights.

[Jon_L]

Netflix is being completely split into two companies. One company "Qwikster" will be for DVDs and the other "Netflix" for streaming. If someone wants both, they will be charged by each of the companies.

Which sounds better than one company charging you twice. Good coverup.

[Guest bkelm18]

I now subscribe to streaming only. What a deal. All you can eat for $8 a month.

I understand people don't like price increases, but good grief, $16 for all-you-can-eat streaming AND DVDs BY MAIL? It is still a deal. Could the communication have been handled better? Maybe.

The postage on the DVDs I used to get from them was 44¢ each way. That is 88¢ for each disc they send out by the time it is returned. If they send you out 10 discs a month they lose money on the postage alone, forgetting the other costs of doing business. They have to be profitable to stay in business.

The DVD is dead. The writing is on the wall and it is only a matter of time. It is a dead-disc walking. Streaming will be the only solution before long as the DVD goes the way of the 8-track and the vinyl album.

It's really not all you can eat streaming. Their content is rather lacking. Mostly just older stuff that I wouldn't rent anyway. The only thing they got going for them is TV episodes and those are about to take a big hit as well. Yes companies do price increases, but paying a new price for something that is twice as much as I was just paying for the exact same services without warning really doesn't sit well with me. Then they pull out that non-apology apology letter. It was a heck of a deal when it was less than $10 a month. Now it's really not that much of a deal unless you watch lots of DVDs a month. Redbox works best for the casual DVD watcher, and like I said, Netflix's online content really ain't much to write home about.

[G27]

I use Vudu for new releases - yah, it's online, but I access it through my Bluray player and can stream new releases in 1080p...

[Guest Lester Weevils]

comcast on-demand has a good selection, a large free area for older movies and shows and pay for view for newer stuff at a pretty low cost per movie. It is just like a player, pause, rewind, watch it as much as you want (it is "rented" for 2 days I think). Only works if you use their service though. The ONLY reason I pay for cable is they have my internet, and its basically a bundle, buy one get one cheap. The price for basic cable on top of the internet is not bad at all....

I signed on to the first month free Netflix streaming a few weeks ago because Mike Gideon mentioned the film idiocracy and online search said netflix had that one. But after signing up discovered that idiocracy and most of the things I'd like to see were DVD only. But did manage to find a few obscure things worth watching.

Hadn't tried the XFinity online viewing. I have comcast cable tv because wife watches it, but do not get internet from comcast. Yesterday I looked at the XFinity online viewing which now comes with the TV package and doesn't depend on comcast internet service. It streamed a sample movie fine off DSL. Hadn't looked at comcast online viewing earlier because the set-top on demand has such poor selection. About gave up on it. Most of the time if I'm in the mood to watch TV the other hundred channels don't have anything interesting, then look thru their entire on demand and still not see anything worth watching.

The online on demand seems to have a little more variety. Maybe something in there somewhere is worth watching. The old movie I watched on XFinity last night had more commercials than mainstream TV. I swear there were commercials every 5 minutes. At least with the set top on demand, you can fast-forward thru commercials but the online viewing doesn't allow fast forward thru commercials. Can't see the logic of paying for a service just so you can pay to watch commercials. If all the XFinity online streaming inserts a commercial every five minutes I won't be able to stand to watch it. There would be too much risk of getting mad and cancelling Comcast in spite of wife liking the service.

[zapfbroad]

Netflix uses roughly 30% of all internet bandwidth during peak times. ISPs cannot be loving this. comcast has the infrastructure here with approx 450,000 customers they can double that count and still maintain the packet rate. other carriers will be strained beyond capacity in this region. if wireless carriers can get the devices to transition seamlessly from wimax to lte then at home use could be subsidize with that. except att with the hpsa+ hiccupers. with as many netflix subscribers as they have they are a powerhouse to bargain with the studios. others will continue to pop up and fade out as studios try more profitable partnerships with new enterprises, however netflix currently has the base to command best pricing. if comcast would eat the profit and set a flat rate for ondemand movies +$5/month for hd ondemand movies they would have the potential to cripple netflix substantially.

netflix alternatives you ask?

paperback books and an oil lamp by which to read them

[MacGyver]

Got this from Netflix today. Man, they've screwed this up in a major way. Say hello to shareholder lawsuits. I'd guess we'll be saying goodbye to at least the CEO in the near future.

We know yourecently canceled your Netflix membership, but we want to share this news withyou. It is clear that for many of our members two websites would make thingsmore difficult, so we are going to keep Netflix as one place to go forstreaming and DVDs.

Thismeans no change: one website, one account, one password…in other words, noQwikster.

Whilethe July price change was necessary, we are now done with price changes.

We'reconstantly improving our streaming selection. We've recently added hundreds ofmovies from Paramount, Sony, Universal, Fox, Warner Bros., Lionsgate, MGM andMiramax. Plus, in the last couple of weeks alone, we've added over 3,500 TVepisodes from ABC, NBC, FOX, CBS, USA, E!, Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, ABCFamily, Discovery Channel, TLC, SyFy, A&E, History, and PBS.

Weare committed to making Netflix the best place to get your movies & TVshows.

Respectfully,

The Netflix Team

[analog_kidd]

Well, they lost me as a customer. I held on one extra month (partly because I wanted to give them a chance to do right, and partly because I had some good movies in my queue), but I am officially canceling them this month. I figured they might go ahead and do a special combo pricing on discs and streaming, but it looks like they are holding firm on their new pricing structure.

While I'm at it "Sticking it to the man", Comcast is going to get a little surprize call from me this week to let them know I'm switching to Direct TV, and if they try to raise my Internet fee, I'll be moving over to someone else for that too.

[analog_kidd]

Well, I held true to my promise. Cancelled NetFlix over the weekend. It was unsatisfyingly uneventful. There was no weeping or gnashing of teeth from Netflix. Just an email saying they want their last DVD back. Guess they wre prepared for the mass exodus.

Comcast got it too. We cancelled the TV, but kept the Internet. When I brought back the TV Box, the guy at the counter mentioned, "Did anyone tell you there was a $40 fee for a tech to come out and climb the pole to put a filter on to block the TV? Oh and did anyone tell you your Internet was going up to nearly $70 a month if you don't have a package deal?" I called to complain, and I did get someone who said they could lower the Internet down to $52, which I could live with, but they would not budge on the $40 service call. Makes me mad because I said that should just be a cost of doing business. My goal was to stop getting gouged by Comcast, so I asked them what the service fee was to disconnect it all. They said that was free, so I said "Let's do that". I guess they'd rather send someone out on their dime and lose a customer, than send someone out for free and keep one.

The funny thing is, my son and his wife were visited by a Comcast rep in the neighborhood last week, and hooked them up with a really great deal on TV and Internet. Funny how they bend over backwards for a new customer, but not for the one that has been paying them for the last twelve years.

[MacGyver]

Netflix is down another 20% in after hours trading after their earnings call today. Seems they think they're not done hemorraging just yet. At some point it would seem like they're going to lose so much that they may not even be able to sustain their operation.