Hacking NetFlix

Gray Disc From Blockbuster

I don't rent a lot of movies from Blockbuster stores, but when I was using my 2 free rental coupons this weekend I got Shaolin Soccer (on a recommendation from a good friend) as seen in the scan to the right. I was surprised that the disc was gray, like some of the Netflix rentals.

The studios send the gray discs to Netflix and Blockbuster to save money on the color screen printing, so I'm sure we'll be seeing more of them. Netflix does not duplicate their own discs, as I originally thought when I first saw a gray DVD.

James Rocchi Interviews William Hurt

James Rocchi has posted a video interview he did at Cannes with William Hurt.

NY Times Wrong About Walmart & Netflix

I admire the New York Times and read it often, but I have a problem with the story, "A Force Too Strong, Even for Walmart." Daniel Akst writes:

But the mail-order DVD rental business is competitive. Wal-Mart's departure looks sensible when you consider not only the future of movie delivery but also the market-share battle between Netflix and Blockbuster, which still has actual stores. Then bear in mind that Amazon.com offers a DVD rental service in Britain, and some people think that it may do the same in this country, where DVD rentals could help Amazon leverage its infrastructure and bring in more customers for its merchandise. And when downloading movies becomes an everyday activity, will it be of much use to have a large mail-order DVD rental business like that of Netflix? I am skeptical, and apparently, so are the people who run Wal-Mart.

Walmart got out because they make more money on DVD sales. The deal with Netflix enabled a graceful exit (and Blockbuster is a competitor in DVD sales). Walmart has never taken the DVD-by-mail business seriously and built out the 30+ shipping centers required to be a competitor because it's easier and more profitable to sell DVD's.

Netflix is going to transition millions of customers to online downloads over time. Who else has nearly 4 million online DVD rental customers? They will be well-positioned to convert subscribers from DVD-by-mail to movie downloads, probably starting with a combined offering and eventually phasing out DVD's. Netflix is also adding features like ratings, Friends, and reviews that translate nicely from the analog to the digital world. Why do you think Blockbuster is spending $120 million to catch up?

The story missed the main reason we're still shipping DVD's through the mail: the studios are protecting their DVD cash cow and have only released a fraction of the available movies for download.

The big retailer's decision to abandon the field to Netflix says something about many other businesses that depend on the delivery of information in some physical format. Newspapers, books and magazines, for instance, are still delivered on paper, but eventually many publishers are likely to dispense entirely with paper and ink to deliver materials electronically, to readers who are freed from their desks by wireless networks and portable magazine-sized tablets with vivid screens. There have been several false starts, but the long-term trend is nonetheless clear.

Reed Hastings named the company "Netflix" long before the technology (or the studios) enabled him to provide movie downloads.

Thanks to Joe for sending this in.

Should Netflix Offer a Dating Feature?

Dave Winer wonders if Netflix should take their "Friends" feature a bit further:

I wonder if Netflix has ever thought of partnering with Match.com to connect people who like the same kind of movies?

I'm married, but what do the single people have to say about this? Is a Blockbuster store a place to meet other singles on a Friday night?

New Releases for May 31st, 2005

Here are the new releases for this week. Keep in mind that the USPS is closed in observance of Memorial Day, so Netflix won't be shipping movies until tomorrow.

Movies that caught my eye include Rebel Without a Cause: Special Edition, Embedded/Live, East of Eden: Special Edition, Moonlighting: Seasons 1 & 2, Saints and Soldiers, Beau Geste (Gary Cooper!), The Milagro Beanfield War, Bedtime for Bonzo (starring former President Reagan), and Make Your Own Damn Movie.

Trouble Playing Netflix DVD's?

Brian writes:

I've noticed some odd behavior between NetFlix disks and my DVD player.

For the past couple of months, I've been having a lot of trouble playing Netflix disks on the DVD player hooked up to my TV. The disk won't load, freezes in the middle of a movie, or gets choppy half way into the movie. I don't have this problem wth the disks I get from Blockbuster (the mail service or the store) or the disks I own.

I figured that this was just dirty disks and the way they must get passed around the popular NetFlix service. Even after cleaning them, the problems persisted. This happened even though I couldn't find discernable scratches or damage on the disk.

Next I thought my DVD player must be giving out. I took a disk which froze at the end of the movie (doesn't this always happen at the wrong time?) and tried it in my computer. It played flawlessy. Okay, so I need to clean my DVD player or get a new one. I've had players bite the dust, so this doesn't seem that odd for a three year old player, even though it's not one of those $49 jobs. The machine is not hot and the disks are never hot (my last machine that did this had an overheating problem).

Today my wife tells me that she mentioned this to some friends at a party and found that they've had the same experience. Disks from NetFlix have trouble in their regular DVD players, but play fine in their computers.

I wonder if anyone else has noticed something similar. Where does NEtFlix get its disks? Are they the same thing I buy in the store, or manufactured separately like the CDs or books from the clubs? Why does it get choppy (when it does) around 55 minutes almost every time?

Netflix does not duplicate any DVD's -- the studios provide the movies, and the gray discs are printed in one color to save money.

I paid $30 for my Apex and it plays anything I throw at it, and the Initial we use in the car has yet to reject a DVD. I also watch Netflix DVD's on my PowerBook without a problem.

Has anyone else had a problem with Netflix discs?

Red Herring Talks to Reed Hastings

Red Herring interviewed Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, Netflix CEO Dishes on Web TV, about the future of movie distribution on the Internet.

It’s a situation with which the big telecom, cable, and satellite companies struggle. But Mr. Hastings thinks these companies are making a mistake in underestimating the power of the Internet. “They don’t get the economics of open system innovation,” he said. “They get very well how to do the economics of proprietary systems and it is fundamentally a different ecosystem.”

Mr. Hastings points to new mediums like blogs and podcasts as emblematic of the rapidly changing media landscape that runs over the Internet. IPTV companies will create 200 or 300 channels, while the web will have more like 5 million, he predicted.

There's a possible roadblock in Netflix's attempts to move the business online:

At a symposium at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, on Wednesday entitled “Next Generation Media Networks", Bob Greene, senior vice president of Advanced Services at Starz Entertainment Group, stated, “Netflix can not replicate the subscription model online because it violates our rights. Our subscription model does not run out until something like 2011, 2012, 2013.”

I can't believe they issued a patent for subscribing to movies over the Internet (I also found a bunch of patents on video-on-demand). Sometimes I think the patent clerks were smoking crack when they issued stuff like this.

Netflix Widget for OS X Tiger

I use a PowerBook to work on HackingNetflix, and I have my copy of OS X Tiger on order. One of the features I am looking forward to playing with are Widgets, little programs that run on your desktop and appear or disappear with one keypress. They do cool things like show you the weather, stocks, or even your Netflix queue:

If you have OS X Tiger you can download Dashflix here.

via Netflix Fan Blog.

New Netflix Envelopes & Promotion

Michael S. writes:

Just wanted to let you know of some new envelopes I just started receiving, though the funny part is that two of them were new and one was old. I think because I receive my movies from the San Jose distribution center, this is where they try all the new stuff. So, as you see in the pictures, the old one tells you how to insert the sleeve, and has a return address on it near the top. The new ones don’t have those, and they have changed the font for all type. Also, on the very front (with our addresses), they have changed the font as well for everything, plus the ad inside advertises getting gift subscriptions for father’s day and graduation day. Seems like they’re starting to make more time specific envelopes, and trying get new members by getting current ones to spend money instead of referring them to 2 weeks free. Interesting strategy. Lastly, after my name on the front, it says “**PRSRT” which I guess means presorted...never said that before. Does that help shipping times?

Here's the old envelope:

Here's the new envelope:

And here's the father's day & graduation promotion:

Anyone else notice the new envelopes? I have two of the old ones and I'm wondering if I'll get a new one tomorrow.

Blockbuster Sends Online Bonus Movies for Mistake

Carissa writes:

I noticed a while back that Blockbuster had been shipping me extra dvds from time to time, I thought it was just a lucky fluke for me. This email confirms that it was just Blockbuster trying to keep me as a customer.

Here's the e-mail she received from customer support:

Hello Carissa,

You may have noticed a delay in the shipment of your DVDs early last week. And, by now, we hope you're enjoying the extra discs we sent you as a token of appreciation for your patience.

Once we identified and fixed the problem that caused your delay, we immediately sent you TWICE the number of titles you were to have received. That's right -- if you had two available slots in your list of Shipped Movies, you should have received four titles to make up for your delay.

We realize the extra DVDs may temporarily find you with more movies out than typically allowed by your rental plan. Simply enjoy the extra movies and return them at your convenience. Additional future DVDs will be mailed to you once you've returned the necessary number of DVDs to execute shipment under your plan.

Again, please accept our apologies for this inconvenience.

We appreciate your loyalty,
Your Friends at BLOCKBUSTER Online™

This is excellent customer service. Has anyone else received a bonus movie from Netflix or Blockbuster?