Ohio Chatter
Ohio Chatter

Forums

All Threads Serious Business Sports Politics Archive Pick 'ems Wordio
Log In Create Account

What a scam Netflix's 'Watch Instantly' is

Home ▸ Archive ▸ Serious Business ▸ What a scam Netflix's 'Watch Instantly' is
Scarlet_Buckeye's avatar

Scarlet_Buckeye

Senior Member

5,264 posts
Feb 26, 2011 12:29 PM
The selection is CRAP! I went thru IMDB's top 250 list and I don't even think there's a single title available that you can "Watch Instantly." As if that wasn't a big enough scam, there aren't even recent popular titles such as 'Inception' on there. There's literally NO GOOD TITLES to watch.

If Netflix is truly going to do away with DVDs, they have some serious work to do with getting major titles on their "Watch Instantly" list otherwise Netflix isn't going to have any subscribers.
Feb 26, 2011 12:29pm
TigerNation10's avatar

TigerNation10

Senior Member

483 posts
Feb 26, 2011 12:33 PM
I agree. I signed up for the free month trial and canceled after because I watched like 3 movies.
Feb 26, 2011 12:33pm
Pick6's avatar

Pick6

A USA American

14,946 posts
Feb 26, 2011 12:35 PM
agree.they need some better movie selections.the tv show selection is pretty good imo.
Feb 26, 2011 12:35pm
R

rydawg5

Senior Member

2,639 posts
Feb 26, 2011 12:38 PM
I disagree. I had Netlfix for about 8 months and never even turned in my original "mail in" DVD. I loved having tons of Sitcoms, Tv Shows, and TONS of movies I've never heard of to check out.

WHen I wanted to see a NEW movie, I did Redbox or Blockbuster.

Who the hell wants to see inception for the 8th time? What are you 11?
Feb 26, 2011 12:38pm
Rotinaj's avatar

Rotinaj

Senior Member

7,699 posts
Feb 26, 2011 12:58 PM
The tv show selection is amazing. The movie selection isn't amazing but it's not bad. It's only like $9 a month for 1 movie at a time and unlimited instant. Sounds like a pretty good deal to me.
Feb 26, 2011 12:58pm
krambman's avatar

krambman

Senior Member

3,606 posts
Feb 26, 2011 1:23 PM
It's not really up to NetFlix which titles are available, it's up to the movie studios. All studios have exclusive contracts to only release DVD's to brick-and-mortar stores like Blockbuster and to cable on-demand. Places like NetFlix and Redbox get them a month later. The studio knows they won't make as much money if their movies are available on an unlimited basis like they would be with "watch instantly." No one would go out and pay to rent them or order them on-demand if they could watch them for free. Unless there's a way for the studio to really monetize popular titles in "watch instantly" it will never have top titles or new releases.
Feb 26, 2011 1:23pm
-Society-'s avatar

-Society-

Senior Member

1,348 posts
Feb 26, 2011 1:24 PM
Why is it a scam? Do they not have a free trial that you can see what they have available?

Proper title would be: "I'm a dumbass paying for what I already knew."
Feb 26, 2011 1:24pm
-Society-'s avatar

-Society-

Senior Member

1,348 posts
Feb 26, 2011 1:26 PM
krambman;692600 wrote:It's not really up to NetFlix which titles are available, it's up to the movie studios. All studios have exclusive contracts to only release DVD's to brick-and-mortar stores like Blockbuster and to cable on-demand. Places like NetFlix and Redbox get them a month later. The studio knows they won't make as much money if their movies are available on an unlimited basis like they would be with "watch instantly." No one would go out and pay to rent them or order them on-demand if they could watch them for free. Unless there's a way for the studio to really monetize popular titles in "watch instantly" it will never have top titles or new releases.

Do you really believe all the shit you type?
Feb 26, 2011 1:26pm
Jester's avatar

Jester

Valedictorian Hater

700 posts
Feb 26, 2011 1:42 PM
Watch the Human Centipede.
Feb 26, 2011 1:42pm
tcarrier32's avatar

tcarrier32

Senior Member

1,497 posts
Feb 26, 2011 1:44 PM
there are plenty of good movies on Netflix. Especially the documentaries.
Feb 26, 2011 1:44pm
Pick6's avatar

Pick6

A USA American

14,946 posts
Feb 26, 2011 2:07 PM
Jester;692615 wrote:Watch the Human Centipede.

disgusting ass movie
Feb 26, 2011 2:07pm
krambman's avatar

krambman

Senior Member

3,606 posts
Feb 26, 2011 2:21 PM
-Society-;692606 wrote:Do you really believe all the shit you type?

Yes, that's why I type it. If you don't agree, tell me how I'm in error.
Feb 26, 2011 2:21pm
The Equalizer's avatar

The Equalizer

Dark Lord of the Ville

1,003 posts
Feb 26, 2011 2:28 PM
I never have a problem finding things to watch. I fell in love with the masters of horror series which I think they're all online to watch.
Feb 26, 2011 2:28pm
Scarlet_Buckeye's avatar

Scarlet_Buckeye

Senior Member

5,264 posts
Feb 26, 2011 2:42 PM
-Society-;692602 wrote:Why is it a scam? Do they not have a free trial that you can see what they have available?

Proper title would be: "I'm a dumbass paying for what I already knew."

Who said I paid anything?!

Proper retort would be: "I'm a dumbass who can't read."
Feb 26, 2011 2:42pm
G

gut

Senior Member

15,058 posts
Feb 26, 2011 3:05 PM
I agree that their selection sucks. Problem is, VOD thru the cable provider is limited. And besides, with Blockbuster you could exchange your mailed DVD's for new releases and have those for a few days until your next mailing (that is, if there's still a Blockbuster store near you). So the revenues aren't really the issue since you can get new DVD's thru the mail for comparable subscription plans from Blockbuster or Netflix.

It's absolutely stupid and annoying. If I wanted to watch Inception, I can wait a day or two for Netflix or Blockbuster to mail it to me, or I can return a mailing to Blockbuster and get it free with the plan I have. So why in the world can't I just get it from Netflix streamed online? Charge me $20 a month for a premium sub instead of $10. Money can't be the issue here.
Feb 26, 2011 3:05pm
M

Manhattan Buckeye

Senior Member

7,566 posts
Feb 26, 2011 3:18 PM
Until studios figure out a way to get compensated for new releases on streaming it isn't going to happen until dvds go the way of the dodo (which could happen soon). No one would ever buy a dvd if they can stream at will, and studios aren't willing to give up that revenue until they are confident they can make it up in streaming revenue.

For now, streaming is great for 3 categories - tv shows, documentaries and independent films.
Feb 26, 2011 3:18pm
Trueblue23's avatar

Trueblue23

BASEDgod

7,463 posts
Feb 26, 2011 4:55 PM
There are some VERY good titles available.

Of course the IMDB 250 isn't gonna be available, they probably sell a lot of DVDs of those movies.

I have NetFlix and I love it... but of course, I wasn't retarded expecting any movie under the sun to be available.
Feb 26, 2011 4:55pm
Scarlet_Buckeye's avatar

Scarlet_Buckeye

Senior Member

5,264 posts
Feb 26, 2011 5:07 PM
Manhattan Buckeye;692694 wrote:Until studios figure out a way to get compensated for new releases on streaming...

Uhm... can't they run statistics on the # of "streams" and thus get compensated per 1,000 (or whatever) "streams"?! Maybe I'm over simplifying it, but it sure sounds like it would be easy to do.
Feb 26, 2011 5:07pm
Scarlet_Buckeye's avatar

Scarlet_Buckeye

Senior Member

5,264 posts
Feb 26, 2011 5:08 PM
Trueblue23;692774 wrote:but of course, I wasn't retarded expecting any movie under the sun to be available.

Not expecting every movie under the sun to be available. Simply expecting the the newer titles to be available. Big difference.


Please read people.
Feb 26, 2011 5:08pm
Trueblue23's avatar

Trueblue23

BASEDgod

7,463 posts
Feb 26, 2011 5:10 PM
Scarlet_Buckeye;692786 wrote:Not expecting every movie under the sun to be available. Simply expecting the the newer titles to be available. Big difference.


Please read people.

Maybe you should of done your research before you signed up for NetFlix.

Please read (fine print) people.
Feb 26, 2011 5:10pm
M

Manhattan Buckeye

Senior Member

7,566 posts
Feb 26, 2011 5:15 PM
Scarlet_Buckeye;692784 wrote:Uhm... can't they run statistics on the # of "streams" and thus get compensated per 1,000 (or whatever) "streams"?! Maybe I'm over simplifying it, but it sure sounds like it would be easy to do.

Sure that can work, but it won't be easy to determine a pricing structure that makes sense for the studios, Netflix and Netflix' customers that can easily replace a pricing mechanism for hard copy retail that is been in place for decades. This was one of the biggest issues in the writers' strike a few years ago - the writers wanted a bigger cut from downloads/internet streaming and the studios didn't want to give up too much without fully understanding how much money was really there (South Park had a hilarious episode about this when Canada went "on strike").

Again it probably won't fully happen until hard copies go away completely.
Feb 26, 2011 5:15pm
Jester's avatar

Jester

Valedictorian Hater

700 posts
Feb 26, 2011 5:23 PM
Pick6;692634 wrote:disgusting ass movie
disgusting, and hilarious. I found about it through tosh.0 and basically just watched all the hilarious parts.
Feb 26, 2011 5:23pm
G

gut

Senior Member

15,058 posts
Feb 26, 2011 5:44 PM
Trueblue23;692774 wrote:There are some VERY good titles available.

Of course the IMDB 250 isn't gonna be available, they probably sell a lot of DVDs of those movies.

I have NetFlix and I love it... but of course, I wasn't retarded expecting any movie under the sun to be available.

But you can get pretty much any DVD under the sun through mailing. On the Blockbuster program, you can exchange a mailing for any new release in the store, including blu ray, while you wait for your next mailing. So pretty silly that they don't stream all titles - if they restricted you to one such "premium" rental a week there would be effectively no difference from the current mailing and exchange programs out there.

It's not rocket science - you can make the whole pie bigger (i.e. many people might only rent 1-2 movies a month, but many of them might be willing to pay $20 a month if they can stream whatever on demand). We've seen this play out again and again where content providers are slow to embrace technology and struggle to figure out how to best monetize their intellectual property.
Feb 26, 2011 5:44pm
I

I Wear Pants

Senior Member

16,223 posts
Feb 26, 2011 6:00 PM
I also disagree. I think there's plenty of good movies on there to watch.
Feb 26, 2011 6:00pm
-Society-'s avatar

-Society-

Senior Member

1,348 posts
Feb 26, 2011 7:07 PM
Scarlet_Buckeye;692664 wrote:Who said I paid anything?!

Proper retort would be: "I'm a dumbass who can't read."

Right, because I always complain about services I don't use or pay for.:rolleyes: Fucking stupid.
Feb 26, 2011 7:07pm