NetFlix - "We will charge more for Blu-ray rentals"

[KretzJ]

Wow... this is a damn gutsy move on their part. I, for one, will have to seriously reconsider using NetFlix.

http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/i...571984_15.html

[Mouse]

But it does not say how much they will charge... I'll reserve my judgement until we know the price.

[Blu Titan]

I have the Blockbuster pass, and they are promoting that you can rent as many DVDs or Blu-rays for the same price. I feel safe for now.

[David Mamet]

I've been thinking about canceling my netflix anyway, and this will give me an excuse.

[jsteinhauer]

I volunteered months ago to pay more to rent BD's. So be it, if I can go back to renting more titles without having to wait months.

Why should you expect to rent more expensive material for the same price?

[wormraper]

Originally Posted by jsteinhauer

I volunteered months ago to pay more to rent BD's. So be it, if I can go back to renting more titles without having to wait months.

Why should you expect to rent more expensive material for the same price?

because just like DVD's, you don't own them. I'm only paying more if I own them plain and simple

[sokrman14]

Originally Posted by jsteinhauer

I volunteered months ago to pay more to rent BD's. So be it, if I can go back to renting more titles without having to wait months.

Why should you expect to rent more expensive material for the same price?

Agreed

Originally Posted by wormraper

because just like DVD's, you don't own them. I'm only paying more if I own them plain and simple

I agree with this even more though

[wrsprow]

Originally Posted by wormraper

because just like DVD's, you don't own them. I'm only paying more if I own them plain and simple

Be careful. If Netflix has to pay more to acquire Blu-ray discs, then the renter must bear a proportionate increase as well. However if Netflix gets all dvd's at the same price, the decision is bs.

[cherno]

And then when it becomes cheaper for them to get the blu-rays because of new bulk orders and improved processing and market saturation, I am sure they are going to go ahead and lower the price back down accordingly...

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[Cyan]

Originally Posted by cherno

And then when it becomes cheaper for them to get the blu-rays because of new bulk orders and improved processing and market saturation, I am sure they are going to go ahead and lower the price back down accordingly...

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You forgot the /sarcasm tag in your post.

Honestly, Netflix has gone fairly downhill since BB started to have a resurgence. I don't have a rental membership anymore, because I'd rather just buy 1 BR disc per month and build up a collection than rent them. But this doesn't really surprise me, I think they're losing alot of ground to BB, considering that at BB you can take your movies into the store. BB has managed to turn a disadvantage(having physical stores) into an advantage..well played for them.

[ulri4651]

DirecTV charges more for HD don't they? Comcast? I think so...

[GORT]

Its funny that people here will ***** and complain to no end about the price of BDs but paying more to rent them is ok

[ascotinmpls]

Originally Posted by ulri4651

DirecTV charges more for HD don't they? Comcast? I think so...

DirecTV, yes. Comcast, No.

Did Netflix not announce not too long ago that monthly fees would not increase for HD content? I will obviously reserve judgment until a fee is announced, but anything more than a couple of $$, and i think i would cancel my subscription.

[actionhank]

Originally Posted by jsteinhauer

I volunteered months ago to pay more to rent BD's. So be it, if I can go back to renting more titles without having to wait months.

So it's your fault...

Looks like I am going back to blockbuster

[bajor27]

I've yet to rent a Blu-ray locally, but does anyone know if local Blockbusters or any other video rental place charges more for Blu?

And I also don't remember ever having to pay more for renting DVDs than I paid to rent VHS.

I think this move by netflix is pure crap.

[Cplhicks]

Kinda ridiculous if you ask me. I guess it shows how tight Netflix's budget is. In the old days of VHS, video stores had to pay anywhere from $30-40 (blockbuster) to $70-80 (small stores) for a copy of the new hit film to rent. That was way more than current Blu-ray costs, and yet no video store felt the need to pass that cost onto the customer in rental fees. Yet, when a disc is costing them maybe $15 instead of 5-10, they feel the need to charge extra. I think it's safe to say at least Blockbuster shouldn't be charging more, as they are used to the higher costs.

[Joe Cain]

Variations on the "I want my premium home entertainment experience without paying the premium price" theme...

[mustangfun101]

Just read this:

Netflix history good, future dim
Q1 revenue up 7%, but stock takes hit on soft forecast
By Paul Bond

April 21, 2008

Netflix stock, up 49% this year, was hammered after the closing bell Monday when the company said it merely matched financial expectations in the first quarter, then said it didn't expect to add many subscribers in the current period.
Netflix earned $13.4 million in the first quarter, up from $9.9 million a year ago on revenue that rose 7% to $326.2 million. The company ended the quarter with 8.2 million subscribers, 21% more than in the same quarter a year ago.
But while the company added a net 764,000 subscribers in the first quarter, it said it expects to end the current quarter with 8.3 million-8.5 mill subscribers, translating -- at the low end -- to a gain of 60,000 this quarter.
Netflix, however, raised year-end guidance to 9.1 million-9.7 million subscribers, up 200,000 at both ends, but investors weren't impressed, and the stock was off as much as 15% in after-hours trading after rising 2% to $39.32 during the regular session.
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings also said Monday that he has struck three more partnerships for delivering movies over the Internet to TV screens, like one announced in January with LG Electronics.
Hastings declined to name the companies, but said one is small, and two are large. His intent is to get the Netflix watch-instantly system into Blu-ray Disc players, set-top boxes, game consoles and TV sets so that movies can be easily viewed on-demand by Netflix customers on TV screens and not just computers, as is the case now.
The large partners should introduce products in the fourth quarter, while the small partner's product is expected sooner, Hastings said.
Hastings said Netflix's subscription growth should be strong enough to "aggressively fund" the watch-instantly service, which today boasts 9,000 movie and TV titles.
Hastings, who founded the DVD-by-mail company, also said he will introduce a price increase for customers who request Blu-ray discs.
Customers, he said, are used to paying more for high-definition content, so they shouldn't object to a "modest premium" for Blu-ray. He predicted that the DVD market should "remain enormous for years" after Blu-ray's recent victory over Toshiba in the format war.
Netflix also reported record-low average subscriber-acquisition costs of $29.50, down from $47.46 a year ago. Investors expected a large improvement because Blockbuster has reined in its aggressive effort to grow its competing service to instead focus on making it profitable.

[actionhank]

Originally Posted by Joe Cain

Variations on the "I want my premium home entertainment experience without paying the premium price" theme...

You mean like Bose speakers?

Prices don't contain all the information, despite what New Classical economists might have you think.

[Joe Cain]

Originally Posted by actionhank

You mean like Bose speakers?

That's a fair comparison?