An Apology From Netflix and a Name Change

Ah, I see now...

Step One: Take over the Video Rental Industry making Netflix Superior to any other Video Retailer | Check
Step Two: Take over the Video Streaming Industry making Netflix Superior to any other Video Etailer. | Check
Step Three: Take over the Video Game Rental Industry making Netflix Superior to any other Video Game Retailer/Etailer| Work in Progress

We are now paying extra to fund for step 3! :)
Blockbuster Down, now to its time to mow-down Gamefly! :)

Of course once Gamefly is down ONLIVE is next... lol
 
2 websites, 2 queues, 2 credit card charges, 2 rating systems... so "dum".

Agreed. This has to be the dumbest idea I have heard a company make since Circuit City decided people don't need or want appliances.

And the name?? Qwikster? Seriously?!?! Sounds like a fail ass wannabe superhero.

I am embarrassed to be a Netflix subscriber. SIGH...
 
I cancelled my Netflix account. This wasn't an apology - it was a veiled attempt to justify a really crappy business decision. I LIKED the fact that DVD and streaming were integrated. A small price increase I could have stomached, but forcing me to now have to maintain two services in order to have both and splitting them up such that I can't manage them in an integrated fashion online, no thanks.

They went about this ALL WRONG. They should have phased in a gradual price increase - with more options (like gaming) and perhaps tiered the streaming service (bronze/silver/gold) as to what you've have access to. They should have worked at making their service BETTER integrated - NOT separated. Improved their streaming selection. Added on more service options at added cost (like priority to new releases, exclusive streaming to certain genres, a gaming service, etc.) Instead they botch it all and come up with a plan to make everyone's live more complex (two services, two bills, two independent ways to manage what you have.) I say screw that. After nearly a decade as a customer, I'm letting my wallet vote. I'm no longer a customer.
 
Cancelled a few weeks ago when it was announced. Blockbuster, here I come!
 
Cancelled a few weeks ago when it was announced. Blockbuster, here I come!

I left Netflix back when they announced the price hikes, went to BlockBuster

Havent gone back!

Now im just waiting for BlockBusters streaming service and life will be complete!
 
Is it just me or does it seem like Netflix is trying to separate the DVD business so that when it is eventually killed off (has to be way more expensive than streaming) it will be "Quickster" that bites the dust, not Netflix.

Wasn't this their plan all along? To eventually drop (read: sell) their DVD-rental segment and focus entirely on streaming. I thought I read something to that effect last year.

This whole situation just screams failure. With their stock declining and Reed Hastings selling off 5k of his own shares per week for the last month, I can't imagine their outlook is all that great.

As much as I hate how they've handled this and their pitiful attempt to assuage angry customers, I'll be sticking with Netflix streaming for now. At least until I finish Battlestar Galactica...
 
This reeks of a CEO's knee jerk reaction to customer backlash. You just sent a clear message that you expect the disc service to die (which it would have at some point). The problem is you have accelerated that process and you don't have a good enough streaming service to replace it.

I seriously thought it was an April Fool's joke when I saw the new name - next time spend more than 10 minutes looking for a domain name.

"Hey, maybe if we just move the disc selection onto another site people will stop complaining when they lookup their favorite movie only to find it's not available for streaming." Who are the ad geniuses who came up with that one?

Also, wake up Netflix. I love to stream some content, but billions of dollars are being spent each year on giant HDTV's and sound systems. Your "HD" streams don't hold a candle to 35 - 54 Mbit Blu Rays. Even if they did most ISPs would crumble under the load. Yeah, streaming is ok for a lot of things, but if I'm going to sit down for a few hours to enjoy a great movie I want quality. You are trying to become a "streaming-only" company too early in a country that lags behind the rest of the world in average broadband speed.

I acknowledge the pressure from the studios. It's a tough problem, but your company needs a strong CEO who can manage and negotiate these important relationships. Anyone who green-lights "qwikster" does not have my confidence.

This could work out well for the studios because now people will either need to buy discs again or go to the theater.
 
Personally, I think their naming scheme is completely backwards. Netflix should continue to be the DVD/Video Game rental portion of the company and Qwickster should become the new steaming portion of the company. Even the naming scheme makes sense, "flix vs. quick". Like Kool-Aid, Band-Aid and Kodak, The Netflix brand has become associated with DVD rentals first and streaming media second. Ask any non-tech savvy person what they think of Netflix and they will likely respond to the DVD rental model.

Unless they are planning to sell the business, separating the divisions seems a little silly. Not only will it cost more to develop 2 markets and have 2 separate support departments for each, they will technically be competing with each other for subscriptions. Users are more apt to purchase a more expensive subscription from one company than purchase 2 subscriptions from 2 different companies.
 
I don't know, I still did not gleam any information from that why they raised their prices from that email.

Oh well, bring on the BB streaming service.
 
I left Netflix back when they announced the price hikes, went to BlockBuster

Havent gone back!

Now im just waiting for BlockBusters streaming service and life will be complete!

Thats good to know!!! I like that Blockbuster does not charge extra for Blu-ray's, NO 30 day wait for new releases, and that I can return the disks to the local store!!!
 
Lots of people mentioning Blockbuster, but isn't that a bit like complaining about Facebook and then creating a MySpace account?
 
He didn't tell the truth, that was a bunch of bull. The truth is, pressure from the movie studios forced Netflix to raise prices.
Bingo. The movie studios aren't dumb--they're just slow. They saw Netflix cutting into DVD sales and didn't want any part of it.

I can understand why the CEO didn't mention this fact in the "apology"--if he lays into the movie studios, he can kiss large chunks of the library goodbye. But why can't Netflix anonymously leak some damning information to the media so that the blame goes where it belongs?
 
Sorry--one last thought. The problem with the change wasn't arrogance, IMO. The problem was the change itself. The change presented customers with a choice: see a 50% price hike (I forget the exact amount) or lose half the service.

I can appreciate the desire to split the businesses--after all, distributing physical objects is a whole lot different from streaming media--but with them combined, it's as an earlier commenter pointed out: it's easier to "watch now" part of your queue while you wait for the movies that are DVD-only.

IMO, it's a nasty bait-and-switch from the movie studios--get people hooked on the service while it's cheap, then jack the price up once it's successful.
 
meh... to me it makes good sense. Sure those who have been following know whats going on, but to the average person they don't.

Netflix is now a streaming media company that is working on becoming global.
Qwickster is a DVD rental company that is US only.

If you want dvd rentals, you sign up with qwick. If you want streaming you sign up with flix. 2 Different companies, 2 different kinds of media, 2 different policies and negotiations with the studios. It had to be coming, netflix canada signed a contract with paramount to bring new releases before pay-per-view at the same time they got star trek for netflix US. That goes against the 30 day window that the studios were enforcing on redbox/netflix. How can they justify it? how can the studios justify it? especially since redbox is coming to canada, they can argue unfair competition because netflix can stream movies that they can't rent out.
 
Is anyone using Amazon?

In 2010 I had Netflix, very fast internet, and an HDTV connected to my PC. And I was between jobs, so I had some time. I STILL failed to see the thrill in Netflix streaming. So weak compared to BR, I tried some documentaries but lost interest. It was pathetic compared to On-Demand.

And so many people use their Wii on an HDTV with wireless internet, stretching out the SD for new movies. Blech.

Ask any non-tech savvy person what they think of Netflix and they will likely respond to the DVD rental model.

Is that why Netflix streaming takes up a significant portion of evening internet traffic, period? From DVDs?

Ask a non-savvy person what an album is or a record, they might say the physical vinyl. But digital music releases of 9-15 songs without a CD for sale will be called albums or the "new record" now (the term was still valid in the peak of CD's, of course).
 
Lots of people mentioning Blockbuster, but isn't that a bit like complaining about Facebook and then creating a MySpace account?

Blockbuster online rentals is getting much better. Netflix has not been improving lately.
 
That's it, I'm gone. I switched to disc by mail-only earlier, now I quit, after 8 years of being a faithful customer. I thought Netflix was the best thing of living in the U.S. ^-^

This didn't look like an apology, more like an announcement of yet more stupid changes, like splitting the company in 2 and disconnecting the "Netflix" brand name from the currently most valuable part of the company and what made it what it is today. They could very well have managed the 2 divisions separately within Netflix, that is, if management is competent, which I now doubt.

There are so many reasons why streaming can't be dissociated from the mail offer at this time I won't even try.
This guy is destroying Netflix with his uncertainties, it's going from worse to worse.

I used Netflix mail service as a legal way to discover new (for me) movies, as I usually purchase the ones I like.
I wonder how much Netflix' recent business decisions are causing people to switch fully to "piracy" for this type of usage.
 
No Steve, "Qwikster", with a W and a K... to further demonstrate how stupid this company is.

2 websites, 2 queues, 2 credit card charges, 2 rating systems... so "dum".

Consider if the movie studios are trying to raise fees and/or delay Netflix's access to new releases. By separating the DVD rentals, Qwikster can/might avoid encumbering DVD rentals with the pressure the studios are putting on Netflix over streaming - which has already forced Netflix to raise prices.
 
Do executives gain more prestige amongst their peers by being out of touch with the customer base? Basically, to make up for splitting the services and raising prices, they are increasing customer complexity. Amazing.

Oh yes, Netflix would be a much better company if they ignored the fact that their own operational costs went up 60%, and just hemorrhaged money for the next 3 months until the banks seized all their property.

Wow you people can be dense sometimes.
 
He said the reason for the price increase had to do with splitting DVDs from streaming, without being specific. But, that's not the reason. It has to do with pressure from the movie studies.

Then he goes on and lies again by explaining that it's more natural for DVDs and steaming to be two separate businesses. This has to do with relieving some studio pressure and with trying to win back some costumers with a lower price (albeit, with less service).

I would think they would have stronger bargaining powers as one company with DVB/BD and streaming capabilities. Now they'll have to license each part separately and probably won't get a bundled deal. So wait for more big studios to pull out or hold out for more money from both companies. That will only increase the prices to consumers on both sides.

goodbye Netflix, it was nice knowing you.
 
I still don't understand why some many people are shitting bricks over this. It's one of the cheapest services you pay for every month! I bet many of you (like myself) spend more on coffee every month then the Instant + DVD service combined.
 
I chose netflix weeks ago, killed my dvd by mail with them and went streaming only and used blockbuster by mail. Games included and can drive to the BB store 5min from my house and exchange them increasing the amount of movies I can watch per month.
 
"Most companies that are great at something – like AOL dialup or Borders bookstores"

I wonder why he hasn't mentioned Myspace, or another obsolete resource. Jesus, someone needs to tell this guy it's not 1999 anymore.
 
Netflix was brilliant and innovative for introducing streaming video on its DVD rental site. This move to split the two is the exact opposite. At this point, the apology means nothing, because he apologies while making things even worse. I had been teetering on canceling my account. It's currently on hold, and has been since June. This new move makes it an easy decision.

2011 will go down as the year that Netflix failed. If the competition is smart, they'll be looking at ways to pick up the crumbs. There is now an opening left by this split.
 
I've been told my a few BB managers, Netflix's recent choices have been the best thing thats happened to BB in years. You say pickup the crumbs, BB seems to be grabbing the whole loaf with both hands and is heading for the door.
 
I still don't understand why some many people are shitting bricks over this. It's one of the cheapest services you pay for every month! I bet many of you (like myself) spend more on coffee every month then the Instant + DVD service combined.

It's cheap if you haven't watched much content and can find something good every day (if you use it every day, that is). There is nothing cheap about it if you can only find 1-2 good movies a week to watch. There is also nothing convenient about needing 2 subs to get the same content you were getting for $8.99 last year.
 
It's cheap if you haven't watched much content and can find something good every day (if you use it every day, that is). There is nothing cheap about it if you can only find 1-2 good movies a week to watch. There is also nothing convenient about needing 2 subs to get the same content you were getting for $8.99 last year.

I guess it's good for those of us that don't expect or desire to watch blockbuster films. But seriously... there is tons of content, not even factoring in the TV shows.
 
I guess it's good for those of us that don't expect or desire to watch blockbuster films. But seriously... there is tons of content, not even factoring in the TV shows.

Meh, I've had Netflix for years. I can't find much I want to watch anymore, so I canned them last month. I never watch much as far as movies and TV goes, so it's great for those that sit their asses down on the couch every single night, but I'm not that type of person.

At most, I want to watch ~4 movies and maybe 4-3 TV episodes per month.
 
I still don't understand why some many people are shitting bricks over this. It's one of the cheapest services you pay for every month! I bet many of you (like myself) spend more on coffee every month then the Instant + DVD service combined.

I kept my plan after the price increase (3 DVD plus streaming) as I felt it was still a worthwhile service, but splitting the company up seems a large step backwards. Now I have to manage two lists, two websites, etc.
I am not a heavy streaming user, but it was great to add a movie to my DVD que and see it pop up for streaming and I could watch it. Now I have to manage what I add to streaming directly instead of the system doing it automatically.
 
Honestly......

Apology email, give me a break. ( I like where he said: "raise prices.....we already did that")

Only think on netflix worth watching are the back issues of certain TV shows......only downside there is they don't have streaming for Breaking Bad.
 
Oh, so because it's a separate company, now I don't care anymore about the 60% increase! All is forgiven!

:rolleyes:
 
I'm confused by the CEO's statement here.

There are no pricing changes (we’re done with that!). If you subscribe to both services you will have two entries on your credit card statement, one for Qwikster and one for Netflix. The total will be the same as your current charges. We will let you know in a few weeks when the Qwikster.com website is up and ready.

Does that mean the price increase is rolled back or his reference to "your current charges" includes the price increase as of Sept 1?
 
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