The Netflix $6 Increase

[Gothick]

There have been a number of reports over the years, both anecdotally and in various media, about Netflix overreaching themselves.

Once the Depp/Burton confection is out, the demand for the DS episodes is definitely going to increase.  It would seem that some diehard Depp/Burton fans are already starting to watch the old shows to try and get a flavor for the new project.

G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

If Twitter and IMDb are any indication, I'd say they definitely are renting/streaming DS from Netflix because I've many tweets/posts where Depp/Burton fans say as much. As a matter of fact, I'd say that right after the film, watching DS (and that includes the '91 version) is the next most tweeted about DS-related thing on Twitter.

(And speaking of watching DS, I love this particular tweet from earlier today:

kapnkaty
Has anyone else ever noticed the severe sexual overtones between Willie Loomis and Jason McGuire? Because, yowza. #DarkShadows
16 hours ago)

[borgosi]

I've only been a Netflix member for a few months but I've had any trouble with a DVD or a streaming movie. I have all of the Dark Shadows DVDs but I find streaming the show to be a good way to watch what it and save my disc from wear.

[tragic bat]

It must be noted that we don't have all have the same netflix; if you live in Florida or Maine and I live in California or Hawaii, then we are accessing a different warehouse when we order dvds and won't have the same index.  On my netflix, it shows about half of the Dark Shadows Collection DVDs are in "save" mode--i.e. not currently available for renting (and yes, in the past I did receive some of the famous cracked or unplayable DS discs).  Personally, I agree with Gothic; my rural broadband just doesn't do streaming well, so I'd muchly prefer to have something on a disc or directly on my desktop.  Netflix focussing purely on streaming doesn't do anything for me; but there is a whole lot of DVD's, (not only Dark Shadows) on my 'saved' list that I wish they would make available.

[Brandon Collins]

I'm also not surprised by the price increase since Netflix has really become the go-to way to rent and watch movies instead of visiting a movie store. Not to mention the fact that I'm sure they're trying to increase their library offerings and/or try to get more copies of things they already do offer. Since there isn't a time limit on how long you can keep a DVD, some people keep them forever and never send them back! I've had the last Netflix DVD I rented for at least 6 months or more because I keep forgetting to stick it in the mail. (Which, after I finish this I will immediately go and do that).

Fortunately for me, I own all of the DS DVD sets except for two of DS: The Beginning. So I can watch it anytime I please by just pulling out one of these sets. But, for those who don't, streaming is a great option that can definitely be frustrating. I have found it very annoying before when I've tried to watch a series and one or two episodes is missing here or there, or they only have the first portion of the series but not the last half or even the overall majority of the entire thing. They have enough to get you hooked and then you're SOL.

When I use Netflix anymore, I just stream whatever I want to watch. Eventually everything is going to be on there anyway, and Netflix is constantly getting awesome new licenses, like the one that allowed them to just add the entire Star Trek television library. That was pretty surprising to me given how guarded that series is and how much it costs (ridiculous amounts!) on DVD and Blu Ray.

[Gothick]

Thanks, Brandon Collins.  I am sure you are right and less and less will be available with the discs, and those of us who have issues with streaming will just be stuck.  It is the way of the world...

Just curious, did they mention whether with Star Trek, in the case of the original series, will it be the unedited episodes, or the ones where they replaced the lovely old paintings, models and maquettes with tacky new CGI effects?  (My apologies to those who think of the shift to CGI on vintage classic TV shows is an "upgrade."  The thought of it makes me want to vomit.)

In the best of all worlds, they would offer both--the original episodes and the "improved" ones--so fans could have a choice.

I hear that some of the 1970s Dr Who stories are getting "improved" with CGI as well.  If the Depp Shadows franchise really takes off, I wonder whether there will be a move to attempt this with at least some relays of the original Shadows shows.
G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

There already was an attempt to "improve" DS - though not to the point of CGI being substituted. But back when DS was running on the Sci-Fi Channel things were edited out, things were edited in, and completely different music cues were sometimes substituted. Let's just hope it never even comes to that on DVD and/or whatever other medium comes down the road...

[Brandon Collins]

Just curious, did they mention whether with Star Trek, in the case of the original series, will it be the unedited episodes, or the ones where they replaced the lovely old paintings, models and maquettes with tacky new CGI effects?  (My apologies to those who think of the shift to CGI on vintage classic TV shows is an "upgrade."  The thought of it makes me want to vomit.)

I'm not sure if the original Trek episodes are edited or unedited. I have only watched select episodes from TNG thus far.

And I agree with your point that "it's the way of the world" for everything to go streaming eventually. After all, these companies need to find new and inventive ways to make money off of us where entertainment media is concerned. With more and more people watching things online, you've seen companies like Hulu and other beings created. Initially they're free, but then after people become used to using their services they begin to charge. Hulu really irritated me because they originally offered certain shows currently airing on television for free, meaning you could view them anytime at your leisure for no cost. But now they've changed it so that some episodes are free but others you must sign up for their "Hulu Plus" program in order to view, which means paying a monthly access fee. And, of course, the episodes they reserve for this service are often the best, where all the plot points finally come together and something important happens.

Hopefully as the popularity and interest of Dark Shadows undoubtedly grows as the movie nears release, Netflix will make the decision to offer the original series in its entirety through streaming or DVD service.

[KMR]

I have all of the Dark Shadows DVDs but I find streaming the show to be a good way to watch what it and save my disc from wear.

You must have a peculiar DVD player, Borgosi, if you're worried about wearing out your DVDs.  The only thing that DVD players touch during playback is the hub (the center circle, right around the hole).  The laser beam that reads the data off the disc has no wear effect at all.

[loril54]

There is also an article, I think posted here that people are watching DS, streaming and using alot of bandwith.

Streaming does give you instant gratification.

[hoffman]

I have a question on the Streaming Dark Shadows Videos on Netflix.
Are the dvd extras (bonus interviews) streamed also?  I have watched Dark Shadows streaming videos but have not found episodes that contain bonus interviews.   If the bonus interviews are streaming how do I locate them?

Thanks

[borgosi]

KMR - I was talking more about wear in terms of the liner notes and post cards than the disc themselves.

[Miss_Winthrop]

I probably won't indulge in 'streaming' to my PC with a 20" screen as opposed to watching the dvd/vhs episodes on my 32" HDTV screen.  The choice is pretty clear.  Right away I noticed that the dvd's were lacking.  They didn't include all of the gaffs, miscues, etc that the vhs tapes have.  So...I am fortunate enough to have the complete set of vhs.  I gave up the expense of collecting the complete dvd set and only have 12 or so volumes.  I'll probably kick myself down the road when I can no longer get a vcr player.  Now, we all probably have to think about completing Blue-ray sets at some future time. 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Not being a memberof Netflix, I'm not sure how this plays into the whole situation, but here's another development in the saga: Qwikster, Netflix spawn, continues DVD delivery; Company CEO apologizes, keeps price same

[loril54]

Dear lori,

I messed up. I owe you an explanation.

It is clear from the feedback over the past two months that many members felt we lacked respect and humility in the way we announced the separation of DVD and streaming and the price changes. That was certainly not our intent, and I offer my sincere apology. Let me explain what we are doing.

For the past five years, my greatest fear at Netflix has been that we wouldn't make the leap from success in DVDs to success in streaming. Most companies that are great at something – like AOL dialup or Borders bookstores – do not become great at new things people want (streaming for us). So we moved quickly into streaming, but I should have personally given you a full explanation of why we are splitting the services and thereby increasing prices. It wouldn’t have changed the price increase, but it would have been the right thing to do.

So here is what we are doing and why.

Many members love our DVD service, as I do, because nearly every movie ever made is published on DVD. DVD is a great option for those who want the huge and comprehensive selection of movies.

I also love our streaming service because it is integrated into my TV, and I can watch anytime I want. The benefits of our streaming service are really quite different from the benefits of DVD by mail. We need to focus on rapid improvement as streaming technology and the market evolves, without maintaining compatibility with our DVD by mail service.

So we realized that streaming and DVD by mail are really becoming two different businesses, with very different cost structures, that need to be marketed differently, and we need to let each grow and operate independently.

It’s hard to write this after over 10 years of mailing DVDs with pride, but we think it is necessary: In a few weeks, we will rename our DVD by mail service to “Qwikster”. We chose the name Qwikster because it refers to quick delivery. We will keep the name “Netflix” for streaming.

Qwikster will be the same website and DVD service that everyone is used to. It is just a new name, and DVD members will go to qwikster.com to access their DVD queues and choose movies. One improvement we will make at launch is to add a video games upgrade option, similar to our upgrade option for Blu-ray, for those who want to rent Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360 games. Members have been asking for video games for many years, but now that DVD by mail has its own team, we are finally getting it done. Other improvements will follow. A negative of the renaming and separation is that the Qwikster.com and Netflix.com websites will not be integrated.

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.

For me the Netflix red envelope has always been a source of joy. The new envelope is still that lovely red, but now it will have a Qwikster logo. I know that logo will grow on me over time, but still, it is hard. I imagine it will be similar for many of you.

I want to acknowledge and thank you for sticking with us, and to apologize again to those members, both current and former, who felt we treated them thoughtlessly.

Both the Qwikster and Netflix teams will work hard to regain your trust. We know it will not be overnight. Actions speak louder than words. But words help people to understand actions.

Respectfully yours,

-Reed Hastings, Co-Founder and CEO, Netflix

p.s. I have a slightly longer explanation along with a video posted on our blog, where you can also post comments.

http://blog.netflix.com/2011/09/explanation-and-some-reflections.html?lnktrk=EMP&g=66963AA5827B70FEA9BF7C615FC83FEA0AC0315E&lkid=netflixBlog