Netflix Exec Defends 28 Day Deal

[BoredSysAdmin]

A few weeks back we noted how Netflix had made a dubious deal with Warner Brothers, agreeing to delay the release of new physical DVDs for 28 days -- in order to get access to a greater volume of titles for broadband streaming. The deal stinks for DVD users who like new releases, and was driven by a misguided Hollywood executive fear that giving customers what they want (cheap, easy, instantaneous broadband access to huge film titles) will result in fewer DVD sales.

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Netflix-Exec-Defends-28-Day-Deal-106496

 

[j_garcia]

http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Netflix-Exec-Defends-28-Day-Deal-106496

Ummmmmm didn't we already go through this with Napster? The music industry didn't crumble as a result of MP3, they just need to adapt. OF COURSE it will result in lower DVD sales, so they need to work WITH companies like Netflix.

 

[Ares]

J are you asking Hollywood to be smart? that's like asking Arnold Schwarzenegger to say California right.

 

[Audioholics]

He should have found a way to leverage that move with getting additional content for instant streaming... If you lose in one area (time to market) it would be nice to gain in another (streaming content availability).

 

[MidnightSensi]

Is it all new releases they are delaying 28 days, or is it just Warner Brothers?

I don't even want to have the Blu-Rays unless they are really good, and I don't know that until I see them. If I buy a movie it is after I have seen it through Netflix. When I put a movie on Netflix, it is generally based on a recommendation. So if someone recommends me a movie, and I can't add it on netflix for 28 days, I'll forget and that will decrease my (already low) chances of buying it.

I love movies, but I don't really like owning them unless they are a reference disc or have a high replay value - and that's rare. To me, having a shelf full of blu-rays has no appeal to me. Expensive, takes up space, and most of the movies you'll never watch again.

 

[j_garcia]

For now it is just Warner Bros. but it is an indicator of the direction things will go for the rest of the manufacturers as well as other retailers most likely.

 

[Nomo]

The most practical reason is that the savings derived from this deal enable us to be in stock completely on day 29. Remember that we're a subscription service and the way that you manage the economics of a subscription service is to manage the demand of any disc, depending on the economics of the disc. In the case of the most expensive disc, which in this case is a Warner Bros. disc, purchased through a 3rd party, those discs were out of stock for far longer than 29 days for most Netflix subscribers

So what I'm hearing is:
A) My subscription price will go down.
B) On day 29, the top 5 movies in my queue won't show up as "Very Long Wait" and stay that way for 2 or 3 weeks.



Boy this sucks. It's not like I absolutely need to rent a movie the day it's released, but 28 days? Get real.

 

[Nomo]

Is it all new releases they are delaying 28 days, or is it just Warner Brothers?

I don't even want to have the Blu-Rays unless they are really good, and I don't know that until I see them. If I buy a movie it is after I have seen it through Netflix. When I put a movie on Netflix, it is generally based on a recommendation. So if someone recommends me a movie, and I can't add it on netflix for 28 days, I'll forget and that will decrease my (already low) chances of buying it.

At this point it's just WB. But no doubt the others will follow suit.

You will still be able to put the movie in queue, as you can with movies that are currently playing at theatres.

 

[j_garcia]

So what I'm hearing is:
A) My subscription price will go down.
B) On day 29, the top 5 movies in my queue won't show up as "Very Long Wait" and stay that way for 2 or 3 weeks.



Boy this sucks. It's not like I absolutely need to rent a movie the day it's released, but 28 days? Get real.

Why they think this will somehow turn into sales for them is the part I don't get? While it may make a few renters buy during that period, I think it will actually backfire with a larger number of others and translate into enough people who won't buy that it will offset any potential gains. I can wait if that is the game they want to play.

 

[Nomo]

Why they think this will somehow turn into sales for them is the part I don't get? While it may make a few renters buy during that period, I think it will actually backfire with a larger number of others and translate into enough people who won't buy that it will offset any potential gains. I can wait if that is the game they want to play.

My knee-jerk reaction here is to drop my Netflix subscription and go back to renting from the Hollywood video a couple miles away. But this most likely, if the Netflix experiment works for WB, is a sign of things to come.

 

[just-some-guy]

I love movies, but I don't really like owning them unless they are a reference disc or have a high replay value - and that's rare. To me, having a shelf full of blu-rays has no appeal to me. Expensive, takes up space, and most of the movies you'll never watch again.

same here. i learned during my LASER DISC days. buying expensive movies, and only watching them once. i'm not made of money. so far netflix is my friend(i hope they don't screw that up).

as far as 28 days goes. for now, i don't care. i like the newer movies for their, usually, better a/v quality. but i still rent back to about 10 years. lots of good movies i have yet to see.

 

[j_garcia]

I got Netflix for new releases that I wasn't interested in buying and series on cable channels that I don't have, but I do have a decent percentage of older movies as well. The thing is, many of those older movies are often not on BD. Not a big deal most of the time.