Are you happy with Netflix streaming?

Do you like streaming? Are you happy with the amount and choice of movies to stream? Is it too slow for your connection? Personally, I think the collection is catered more towards the cinema buffs than the casual fans. D. W. Griffith? Metropolis? Really? And yet no Casablanca? It seems weird to me.

Their selection is the result of the studios and rights-holders they've been able to negotiate mutually satisfying deals with. If they don't have Casablanca, it's probably not for lack of trying, but for either lack of interest from the studio that owns it, or else a failure to come to an agreement on price.

Anyway, I'm of two minds about Netflix Instant. On one hand, the selection is still a little sparse. If I want a random movie I know it's probably only going to be available instantly one out of every five times or so. On the other hand, even that ratio is pretty good given how insanely well it works and how insanely convenient it is to watch things that way. And sometimes one "title" can be an entire season of a television show. Being able to watch those on Netflix Instant is really, really helpful.

I am, however, a little perturbed when things are about to expire. They're basically throwing down the tracks as the train comes through, trying to negotiate new deals and renew old ones all the time. So it goes.

Still very happy, though. It's cheap, works well, and has a pretty good selection given that it's just one flat fee. And I'd say it's getting better over time.

I didn't really think of the studio obligations. You make a good point. But still. D. W. Griffith? Really?

I'm new to Netflix Instant but not to the concept of On-Demand watching, since it's been bundled with our Comcast/Xfinity DVR package for years now.

Between the two I can always find something good to watch. For instance, I had been DVRing episodes of Torchwood when Comcast could find 'em, but there were gaps in the series chronologically, so it was frustrating to have a bunch of later episodes taking up space on the DVR while I waited for it to find earlier episodes on various channels we have. But with Netflix Instant, I've been able to start Torchwood from the very beginning and I'm finally humming right through the series in order. I deleted the DVRed episodes from our device and freed up a lot of room that way.

Same thing with Archer. And it'll be true of some movies too. But I did have to get Frisky Dingo on DVD because it doesn't stream instantly. It feels a bit random, though I know it's not. But it's a bit hit-or-miss as to whether I'll find stuff on Netflix or On Demand. And of course, most of our premium channels on TV are better with their On Demand than Netflix would be. With HBO-GO, for instance (a third way of watching stuff on HBO), I can watch every episode of every series they've carried. When hubby was in the hospital for two days in early June, I sat in his room watching episodes of "Carnivale" on my iPod touch with earbuds while he slept. Awesome!

It takes a few more hoops to jump through to get Netflix Instant up and running (compared to Comcast's On Demand), but when we combine it with On Demand and regular programming, it creates an awesome virtual library of stuff that we don't have to purchase or rent some other way.

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The only bad thing I have to say about streaming from Netflix is there is no option for subtitles if you want them.

There are on some movies.

I have no complaints, none. I'm grateful for whatever I can get. They're providing a service most others can't compete with, and they are getting better with age. Sometimes the stream is slow, yes, but I can recall a time that streaming films off the internet wasn't even feasible... that too will get better. I'm content, and I'm glad to say that I'm a consumer of their services.

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-Stan Brakhage

Maybe on the foreign movies that haven't been dubbed, but I mean on English movies, it's probably just me but I like to have the subtitles on sometimes cause of thin apartment walls and not wanting to make the neighbors mad.

I guess there is on some, because I was watching Being John Malkovich just the other day on instant and there were subtitles available on it.

Netflix irritates me with its whole "30 day" delay studio deal. I get the business side of it, but its irritating to think that the studios can arm twist a lot folks into buying the film for $26.00 a pop when it comes to DVD just because they cant rent it. I have so many rewards at BB that its insane to imagine them going out of business and I hope they never do. As it is, I still drive to another town to rent the movies I want to see immediately as opposed to waiting for Netflix, or buying them. Thank god I have the account # to someone else's Netflix account, as I would never pay for it!

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something witty goes here......

looks like i won't be happy with netflix streaming anymore, the greedy ****s-

http://blog.netflix.com/2011/07/netf...plans-and.html

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Hey, if it'd come out at that price we'd be fine with it. We're spoiled.

no, i'd NEVER pay $7.99/month for such a piss poor streaming catalog. looks like I'll be downloading a helluva lot more come September.

Interesting. If enough other people feel that way (I think the price is reasonable, but that's just me), it might force them to expand their catalogue even faster than they'd planned. That'd be nice.

Love it. Where else can I watch Black Adder and Doctor Who episodes without having cable?

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i hope they do. don't tell me you think it's adequate? for $7.99? i'll switch to Amazon streaming before that.

I got the price increase email this afternoon too. Frankly, since I just signed up and am still on the freebie month, I'm not taken aback. I originally signed up for their streaming-only plan, and that was already $7.99 a month. Adding one DVD at a time was an extra $2 a month, so in my view, what they raised was the price of combining those two plans.

Now, in my mind, they raised it too much because the plan I have now (unlimited streaming, 1 DVD at a time) is currently $9.99 a month. It'll now be $15.98 a month, or about six bucks more.

So, once the price increase kicks in (any billing after Sept. 1), I'll be going back to streaming only. If I can't find something in their streaming list, I'll find it some other way (Redbox or Hulu or Fancast or something).

Seems like everyone is raising their rates. I have to rethink Mozy backup because they're restructuring their pricing plan too, WAY upwards. ...

yeah, exactly! it went from a $2 jump to add a rental plan, to twice what you'd pay for the streaming. of course people are going to object.

well, i am, anyway. and all those people who complained on the Netflix blog.

Oh, I agree. I don't like it ... which is why I'll just dump the DVDs and stick with the streaming. And I think they're shooting themselves in the foot a bit here with that huge jump.

But I'm just not of a mind to complain about it officially. I'll just vote with my (lack of) dollars and downgrade.

My guess is that streaming is the wave of the future and they're making the DVD portion more expensive because it's rapidly becoming a royal pain in the arse for them to use all that paper/envelope/postage/staff to mail out DVDs all the time. The streaming has got to be the real moneymaker anyway.

And if they start phasing out DVDs and keep adding to their streaming library, so much the better.

But yeah, short-term, it sucks.

they said something in the blog entry about how they were planning on trying to phase out DVDs, but that the high demand for it has hindered that. i dunno. right now i pay $23.98/month for unlimited streaming and 3 DVDs out at a time, but i was thinking about jumping down to 2-at-a-time. if they can make their streaming catalog more awesome, i'd even be willing to pay the $7.99 just for that, too. i think it would be a fatal mistake to charge without maximizing the instant plays. they gotta move with the times. i'll just download what they won't offer if i have to.