Netflix to offer unlimited DVD plan, raise price to stream too

[ej510]

Netflix is launching unlimited DVD-only plans in the U.S. -- but as a part of that move, it's scrapping unlimited plans that include physical DVDs and online streaming.

Subscription movie rental service Netflix said Tuesday that the changes are meant to "better reflect the costs" of each option. The changes cut prices slightly for customers who want only DVDs, but streaming video will cost extra. Customers who want both will essentially have to pay for two plans, raising their overall bill.


Netflix's unlimited streaming-only plan will remain $7.99 a month, while its "1 DVD at a time" plan will also cost $7.99. So customers who want both will have to shell out at least $15.98 a month.

That's a big jump from the $9.99 a month customers pay for a plan that offers unlimited streaming plus 1 DVD at a time.

Cont'd at the link: http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/chi-netflix-to-offer-unlimited-dvd-plan-raise-price-to-stream-too-20110712,0,1835731.story

[sasha031]

1. looks like I'll be cancelling my subscription

[truebrit71]

37. +1

The online streaming content is below average, and they don't have alot of the newest releases so I will have to seriously re-evaluate if they increase the cost of the service that much..

[n2doc]

2. oh joy

I already cut back last time they raised prices. Looks like they want to follow the cable companies model .

[CBGLuthier]

3. Even at a slight increase still hell of a better value than cable

[JuniperLea]

31. I'll cancel on principle...

I hate this crap.

[IndyPragmatist]

50. Yep, I will be cancelling as well

Unless they start putting new movies online. I like having both, but I'm not paying that much for them. And individually, I won't pay unless they really step up their online content.

[Drale]

4. Still not that bad a price considering

that to rent 4 movies at Blockbuster it would cast 20 bucks a month.

[dana_b]

5. I love the streaming!!

since I don't go to movies but once a year or so, I can do this but it will affect many.

[itsrobert]

6. Wrong!

"Netflix's unlimited streaming-only plan will remain $7.99 a month"

[DainBramaged]

7. Here come the gnashers and wailers.....

Still the cheapest form of entertainment period. ONE MOVIE is $15 to see, one. Plus refreshments if you get them.

[nc4bo]

8. How is all this going to work out in light of the fact that ISPs and phone companies are charging

more or going to tiered services.

I don't know anyone who purchases vid streams so I'm curious as to how expensive it is when customers have data limits and enjoy regular movie watching or how quickly one can go over these limits.

ETA: my daughter loved Netflix for movies and games, she doesn't stream.

[in_cog_ni_to]

9. I've been waiting for this. I've wanted streaming only option for a long time.

We're on the 1 DVD with streaming and the DVD rarely gets watched and just sits here for months at a time. I just hope this includes better choices/newer movies to watch. I did notice last week they had added a whole bunch of different movies and was hoping THIS was why. :) Yay! This is perfect for us. Unlimited streaming for $7.99. BARGAIN.

[ejpoeta]

15. they've had streaming only option. I've had it for awhile. We had two dvds for awhile

but never were watching them and it seemed pointless. you did pay extra for that. we had 1 dvd and you paid extra for that too. we didn't watch the dvd. it would sit there. so when i found out we could do streaming only we did that because what was the point if we weren't watching the dvds. it limited us somewhat because not all the movies were available for streaming.

[Glimmer of Hope]

42. I don't watch my DVDs either. I think I'll switch to the streaming plan

and do some occassional renting from Amazon.

[dixiegrrrrl]

10. More good news found in a Netflix blog:

I am one of the many Linux Netflix customers who cannot get streaming
. There has been concern that as Netflix focused more and more on streaming, they might drop by mail dvd service altogether.
Thus I find this Netflix comment very very reassuring that dvd by mail will continue:

"Given the long life we think DVDs by mail will have, treating DVDs as a $2 add on to our unlimited streaming plan neither makes great financial sense nor satisfies people who just want DVDs.
Creating an unlimited DVDs by mail plan (no streaming) at our lowest price ever, $7.99, does make sense and will ensure a long life for our DVDs by mail offering. Reflecting our confidence that DVDs by mail is a long-term business for us, we are also establishing a separate and distinct management team solely focused on DVDs by mail, led by Andy Rendich, our Chief Service and Operations Officer and an 11 year veteran of Netflix."

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

[woo me with science]

11. Do they give alphabetized lists of their programs in various categories?

I have considered Netflix, but someone told me that their format seems incredibly user-unfriendly. I tried to browse the site, but it seems you have to sign up for the free trial to actually see it...and I haven't decided to do that yet.

Was the person I talked to wrong, or do they make you scroll through a million titles to find what you want?

All I want is an alphabetized LIST to choose from....say, a grand alphabetized list and then alphabetized sub-lists under Comedy, Drama, Classics, etc.

[in_cog_ni_to]

12. Genres are not alphabetized, but you can search by Movie name and actor names.

They list their movies by category/Genre and you scroll through those on each category/Genre page. There's usually not many to go through (maybe 20-30?) and I think they just list the most popular/newest on those pages, but any movie that interests you can be found by doing the search by name or actors. STARZ movies are listed by newest first and there's 100's of those to sift through. I think it's a fairly easy site to navigate and it's quite easy to find what you want with a search.

[woo me with science]

17. Thanks for describing it for me.

I hear and respect that you find it easy to navigate. Personally, that would frustrate the heck out of me. I don't always know what I am looking for, but I like the ability to scan an alphabetized list.

I don't like being forced to wade through everything if I can't remember the exact title I am looking for, and I don't understand why they would not offer a plain, ordinary index unless they are trying to force people into random browsing.

Just my personal preference. I also dislike that everything seems to be in icon format nowadays, which makes you scroll through so many pages. I am old school and verbal over visual, and I prefer a nice, typed, one-page list.

Thanks again for the information. :hi:

[suffragette]

21. There are quite a few related sites that do this to some degree

Here's one that's done it specifically for Netflix's watch instantly offerings:
http://instantwatcher.com/titles/all

You can also search by genre, etc

Not sure if anyone's done a similar site for DVD's from Netflix.

[woo me with science]

25. That's exactly what I was looking for.

Thank you! :)

[suffragette]

40. You're welcome

I like having both the one at a time dvd and the watch instantly since there is so much more available by dvd, but if I'm not in the mood to watch the dvd at the moment I receive it, I have additional options.

[dixiegrrrrl]

29. I just read on their blog:

"We're bringing sortable lists back. You'll see them return later this month."

Sounds like they got an earful for removing it.

[angstlessk]

41. I wondered what happened to the sortable list...that was the ONLY

way I used to search movies...glad they will bring it back!...wish I had complained...coulda thought it was ME that caused the change...

[dixiegrrrrl]

46. They got a boatload of complaints about it, the Netflix rep told me when I called up to complain.

[woo me with science]

48. This is very good to know.

Thank you!

[NYC Liberal]

33. instantwatcher.com is your very best friend.

Trust me, it's much better than Netflix's site for browsing movies.

You can drill down into categories and subcategories, see the newest-added movies, sort by rating/release year/popularity/alphabetically etc.

It even tells you dates when movies are being added and being removed.

[woo me with science]

49. I just went and started poking around there.

It looks great. Thanks!

[MarianJack]

52. Just For Your Sig Line,...

...I wish we could recommend answers to original posts!

PEACE!

[dixiegrrrrl]

13. And they raised ALL prices, across the board. AGAIN.

The most popular plan, 3 dvds and unlimited streaming, a month, was 20.00 a month.
Next month it changes to 24.00 a month ( plus tax).

Unlimited DVDs ONLY is only offered at a 1 or 2 dvds out at one time a month.

So I am paying for a streaming service I cannot get, and the price just went up.

Lovely.

[masonjason22]

14. signup

I'll still sign up for them

[JackDragna]

16. Wonderful. So they edit their site to eliminate many types of searches..

..and NOW they want MORE money?

[dixiegrrrrl]

26. They also eliminated any customer id linked to the reviews

eliminated the "friends" pages.
A truly anonymous site.

[Ruby the Liberal]

18. Just got the email from them. 60% increase from $10 to $16

Dear Ruby,

We are separating unlimited DVDs by mail and unlimited streaming into two separate plans to better reflect the costs of each. Now our members have a choice: a streaming only plan, a DVD only plan, or both.

Your current $9.99 a month membership for unlimited streaming and unlimited DVDs will be split into 2 distinct plans:

Plan 1: Unlimited Streaming (no DVDs) for $7.99 a month
Plan 2: Unlimited DVDs, 1 out at-a-time (no streaming) for $7.99 a month

Your price for getting both of these plans will be $15.98 a month ($7.99 + $7.99). You don't need to do anything to continue your memberships for both unlimited streaming and unlimited DVDs.

These prices will start for charges on or after September 1, 2011.

You can easily change or cancel your unlimited streaming plan, unlimited DVD plan, or both, by going to the Plan Change page in Your Account.

We realize you have many choices for home entertainment, and we thank you for your business. As always, if you have questions, please feel free to call us at 1-888-357-1516.

–The Netflix Team

_________________________________________________________________________

While they still have a lot of titles in my queue that aren't available for streaming, I will hold off until September before making a change. I hope they add a bunch of new (and recent) titles to the streaming service as I too seem to keep a DVD for weeks before returning it for a new one.

[dixiegrrrrl]

19. I just found a price option for dvd only, no streaming

it was sort of hidden on the account/pricing page, but at least there are options for those of us who cannot get streaming.
So now I can get more dvds for less a month than I was paying for the dvd out+streaming option.

Problem for streaming customers is Netflix lost its Starz contract, and will have to pay HUGE money to get it back.

good information in 2 Netflix blogs I read:

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

and

http://www.hackingnetflix.com/2011/07/netflix-announces-new-dvd-only-plans-pricing-for-combined-plans.html#comments

[Ruby the Liberal]

22. Yeah - I had posted about that earlier on another Netflix thread here

Apparently Netflix customer base grew to be larger than the Sony/Starz contract allowed for.

I just checked my queue and I have about 20 that are DVD only.

[Blues Heron]

23. Thanks for the heads up

Just changed from 3 dvds + streaming (which was going up to 23.99) to 3 dvds only (15.99) thanks !

[dixiegrrrrl]

24. clever how they hid that option, so you have to find the rest of the price menu

to realize you can save money.
It was probably there all along. but hard to find, and I have been paying for streaming I can't use...argggh.
Just changed to 4 out dvd only for same price as 3 dvd with streaming....heh.

[Nailzberg]

20. They've been getting the streaming rights under an old contract for a steal.

It was written when streaming meant watching on your computer.
But now so many home devices offer streaming, through Wii, BluRay, direct to TV, etc. Film distributors know its a huge market, so they're expected on the new contract to ask for a lot more money on streaming rights.

[AsahinaKimi]

27. YOUTUBE has movies!

Youtube.com has quite a bit of movies you can see for under $4.00. I have been catching up on some great films such as "Ip Man" and "Ong bak 3". Their selection is limited, but I think that will change soon. Some films are even free!

[WolverineDG]

28. Just checked & my subscription goes up a whopping $4/month

for unlimited streaming & 3 DVDs at a time (unlimited) per month.

Hardly worth cancelling my subscription over.

dg

[JuniperLea]

30. I'll probably cancel too...

This really pisses me off. The one company I really liked, and they are greedy and they are screwing us just like all the others.

CEO needs a new Maserati, no doubt.

:banghead:

[kirby]

32. Your outrage is misdirected...

It has nothing to do with the CEO needing a new Maserati, but the Hollywood Studios wanting to greatly increase the prices they charge Netflix to license the movies for streaming. The studios do not want Netflix to succeed. Each company would much rather runs its own service, collecting monthly fees from subscribers rather than let Netflix do it.

[JuniperLea]

34. Then clearly Netflix needs a new PR team...

Seriously. They could have framed this so much better... they did nothing... that is bad news.

All I know is that my service will either go up, or I cancel. I can afford the $16 a month to keep both... but why would I.

Dumbass move on Netflix's part not to get out in front of this story. Seriously stupid move, this non-move.

[kirby]

35. They are in a bad position...

They are beholden to the studios in order to get the content to steam. If they piss them off, including bitching in the press, they studios can punish them.
The studios have all the leverage here.

[JuniperLea]

36. Good PR can get around that...

Sad.

[W_HAMILTON]

38. This is difficult...

...well, not so much, in that I'm sure I will continue my subscription. Netflix has had incredible service and always treated me well. I think this is one actual case of Netflix's costs going up so they do seem to be legitimately increasing their prices rather than doing so just simply to make even more money. But how can I punish those that are forcing Netflix into this? They are the ones that are at fault here, not so much Netflix in my opinion.

[rucky]

39. I don't even use the mail-in DVDs

everything I want to see is available in streaming - or I can wait a few months for it to become available.

[angstlessk]

43. Getting rid of Comcast for $70.00+ (for basic plus) per month to Netfix for $7.99 per month!

two Roku's that cost $59.99 each, and streaming TV and Movies that I CHOOSE and not Comcast..well, anyone who thinks it's a bad deal confounds me!

[Shagbark Hickory]

44. That's still very competitive. A single PPV movie is $6.99

And a video store rental is about $5

[S_E_Fudd]

45. Still a great deal...

Especially compared to PPV or buying movies...

RedBox can be cheaper but you have to run to the store to get them...and if you forget to return...1 DVD costs as much as 2 months of Netflix service!!!

[cayanne]

47. I like it and think it is fair.

We only use DVDs so why should we pay for streaming that we can't use?

[Obamanaut]

51. The new plan is $4 cheaper for us. Splitting the streaming and the

DVD mail delivery works out, because we have dial-up and use the three-out-at-a-time DVD plan, which is now lower because of the split.

Good for them.