Netflix Expects 9 Million Subscribers in Q4; Hits 500,000 Blu-ray Customers

Video Business reports on Netflix Barry McCarthy's talk on Tuesday at the UBS Conference:

Speaking at the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference, McCarthy said Netflix already surpassed its year-end goal of having 500,000 subscribers pay an extra $1 a month for the option of renting Blu-ray titles. The company expects to have about 9 million total subscribers by the end of the year.

Separately, Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos, speaking in Los Angeles on Monday, confirmed the 500,000 Blu-ray subscribers and said the retailer will promote Blu-ray inside its mailing envelopes next year.

Comments

[dAVe]

We're coming up to the 1st anniversary of Toshiba surrendering in the format war. Lately, I've been wondering if the Blu-ray disc is the new Lazerdisc.

[Paul from CT]

Can someone send this info to John Kohler @ sony. He seems to think todays consumer prefers to pay 9.99 for standard definition movie downloads like Ace Ventura, Pet detective, rather than be able to stream an entire library of films to your TV.

[CopaceticOpus]

$6m a year ought to take care of the BD movie shortages. Assuming, of course, that this money goes towards buying BD discs and not towards streaming arrangements.

[Craig]

@CopaceticOpus:
I think that the extra Blu-Ray $1 will go towards buying more Blu-Ray titles, but that's only because Netflix has already "borrowed" all the money it can from the monthly fees to subsidize Streaming. So technically the extra Blu-Ray $1 will go towards streaming.

I just think of our monthly subscription fee as a pie, and these items all are a slice of it:
     - Streaming
     - Blu-Ray
     - DVD
     - Infrastructure
     - Postage
     - Salary
     - Other expenses
But streaming is such a money hog that it has entirely eaten into the only slice it can, Blu-Ray. The Blu-Ray slice disappeared. So now they're charging more to give Blu-Ray a TINY $1 slice.

They should have told us like it is, and just charge $1 extra for Streaming and leave the original Blu-Ray slice alone. Grrr.

[leonardodicrapio]

"Lately, I've been wondering if the Blu-ray disc is the new Lazerdisc."

It's still early. I installed surround sound as part of my flat screen purchase. My father George did the same. There's a lot of Leo's and George's out there (a lot more so than there were 15 years ago).

The sound makes it worth the upgrade IMHO (more so than the picture, actually, at least on a 40-42" screen).

Lots of people will stream, but so far I am unimpressed with the way that Netflix likes to make my Tivo reboot.

There are going to be physical disc sales for a long time because most people do not want to network their television.

[Bob Emmerich]

I hope they do spend some of that money on BD discs as I'm sure there will be an increase in renters after the holidays when the new machines have been opened and the purchases have been watched. I have a PS3 with Iron Man, Wall-E and Transformers to look forward to and I've never seen the first two of those. After that it's rent rent rent as the prices are still too high and the library doesn't carry BD - which I'm glad as my already way too high tax bill came yesterday 8-(

Looks like the Netflix CFO provided all those in attendance at UBS Global Media and Communications Conference with critical Insider Information not available to the general public for some period of time. Where's the Transparency? Where's the Full Disclosure? Where the *F* is the SEC?

[Mark]

Before Netflix start marketing for new Blu-ray customers they need to service there existing ones. I'm getting to stage of dropping Netflix as all new Blu-rays are always long wait!