Netflix: Reading Between the Lines
With today's announcement about Netflix splitting their DVD business from their streaming business, it is fairly clear what's going on if you actually think about what they've said.
1. The two sites are completely separate, two different accounts, queues, etc.
2. Completely different and unrelated company names.
Is the fact that there is no integration between the two a technical issue? I don't think so. These guys may have terrible public relations abilities, but they know how to code a website.
So then why are they being kept apart? The writing's on the wall here, folks. Netflix is going to be ditching Qwikster (terrible name, by the way) and selling it/spinning it off as soon as it can. The days of one integrated DVD/streaming queue are over.
Customers are going to be forced to choose one over the other. In my opinion, this opens up the field for any company with the pockets and drive to scoop them up like crazy. If anyone can re-create the value Netflix had in both DVD's and streaming through one service, they'd get people jumping ship left and right to switch to it.
I find it very disappointing to see a service that only a year ago was probably the best value on the planet for your entertainment dollar. Between the price hike, website changes, and now complete splitting off of DVD's, this is truly a sad day for TV and movie fans. I can't think of any other service that could come close to what we had, and I don't really see another that would want to try taking its place.
I'd also bet good money that once this split is complete and Qwikster has been "disconnected" entirely from Netflix, Netflix streaming plans will become tiered. It'll either be broken up by content quality, amount of viewing/month, HD/SD, or some combination of the three. I can guarantee they aren't going to be sticking with $8 for all-you-can eat-get-everything-we-have streaming. They simply aren't going to survive without getting more out of subscribers with costs rising and content providers demanding higher payments.
As for me, I'm now leaning towards sticking with Qwikster and bidding adieu to Netflix. It's been a great year and a half since we enrolled, and I hate to see this end. Perhaps a future of an adequate streaming library isn't too far off to where we can finally ditch DVD's. If there's anything this past year has taught me, it's that this industry changes in the blink of an eye.
1. The two sites are completely separate, two different accounts, queues, etc.
2. Completely different and unrelated company names.
Is the fact that there is no integration between the two a technical issue? I don't think so. These guys may have terrible public relations abilities, but they know how to code a website.
So then why are they being kept apart? The writing's on the wall here, folks. Netflix is going to be ditching Qwikster (terrible name, by the way) and selling it/spinning it off as soon as it can. The days of one integrated DVD/streaming queue are over.
Customers are going to be forced to choose one over the other. In my opinion, this opens up the field for any company with the pockets and drive to scoop them up like crazy. If anyone can re-create the value Netflix had in both DVD's and streaming through one service, they'd get people jumping ship left and right to switch to it.
I find it very disappointing to see a service that only a year ago was probably the best value on the planet for your entertainment dollar. Between the price hike, website changes, and now complete splitting off of DVD's, this is truly a sad day for TV and movie fans. I can't think of any other service that could come close to what we had, and I don't really see another that would want to try taking its place.
I'd also bet good money that once this split is complete and Qwikster has been "disconnected" entirely from Netflix, Netflix streaming plans will become tiered. It'll either be broken up by content quality, amount of viewing/month, HD/SD, or some combination of the three. I can guarantee they aren't going to be sticking with $8 for all-you-can eat-get-everything-we-have streaming. They simply aren't going to survive without getting more out of subscribers with costs rising and content providers demanding higher payments.
As for me, I'm now leaning towards sticking with Qwikster and bidding adieu to Netflix. It's been a great year and a half since we enrolled, and I hate to see this end. Perhaps a future of an adequate streaming library isn't too far off to where we can finally ditch DVD's. If there's anything this past year has taught me, it's that this industry changes in the blink of an eye.