Hacking NetFlix

New Netflix DVD Releases for August 28th, 2012

Here's the full list of Netflix DVD releases for this week (detailed list): Think Like a Man, Citizen Gangster, Starship Troopers: Invasion, 4.3.2.1, Darling Companion, 10 Things You Don't Know About, Headhunters, Monsieur Lazhar, Apartment 143, Lovely Molly, Jersey Shore Shark Attack, The Moth Diaries, ReGeneration, UFC 146, A Beginner's Guide to Endings, Nate & Margaret, Twinkle Toes: The Movie and The Pirates! Band of Misfits.

Interesting streaming releases in the past week include Sins & Secrets: Season 1, The Killing Jar, Jiro Dreams of Sushi, DreamWorks Shrek's Swamp Stories, Chain Letter, Dark Tide, Bramwell, Elevator, The Snowtown Murders, MythQuest, Night Train, Objectified, McLeod's Daughters, and Love Hurts.

Having Trouble Logging into Netflix or Streaming?

Netflix is making changes to the website and some customers are having trouble logging in or accessing their account. If you're having trouble make sure you are using http://www.netflix.com (and not a shortcut), and if you're still having trouble clear your Netflix cookies using the following link:

     http://www.netflix.com/clearcookies

If you're still having trouble with your Netflix account support is available 24 hours a day at 866-716-0414.

Have you had trouble accessing your Netflix account?

Thanks to Bob, Adam and everyone else for sending this in.

Netflix Rolls Out Updated Account Management Page

The Netflix blog annnouced that they have updated the customer account management page (www.netflix.com/YourAccount), 

Starting today, we are updating our account management page for US customers atwww.netflix.com/YourAccount to make it easier to individually manage your streaming and DVD plan choices. You will start to see this change over the next month. Outside of the Your Account page, the Netflix experience is unchanged, with prices for both streaming and DVD plans remaining the same. All Netflix members, whether they have streaming and/or DVD service, will continue to have one website, one email and password, and one destination for managing their account.

More information is available on the Netflix support site, including this tidbit:

Can I get a free trial for streaming or DVDs?

If you are currently a streaming-only member and would like to try our DVD service, you may be eligible for a one month free trial. The same goes for current DVD-only members.

Netflix Hits One Million Customer Milestone in Ireland and UK in 7 Months

Netflix announced that they have hit one million subscribers in Ireland and the UK in just 7 months, faster than any other country Netflix has entered.

"This membership milestone is evidence that Netflix has rapidly gained popularity in the UK and Ireland," said Netflix Chief Executive Officer Reed Hastings. "Our British and Irish members clearly enjoy the ability to instantly watch a large variety of TV shows and films streaming from Netflix on their favourite devices whenever they want."

Consumers are spending more time enjoying entertainment online, according to a survey by YouGov for Netflix. Ten percent of the UK population now dedicates two hours or more of their day to watching their favourite TV show delivered through the Internet.

Tidbit from the press release: "To put that in perspective, that's four times faster than it took Twitter to hit one million users globally and nearly twice as fast as it took Facebook and Foursquare globally."

Comcast Warning Customers Nearing Monthly Bandwidth Limit

Reader Jonathan watches a lot of Netflix since he cut the cable TV cord, and since he used more than 270gb of data, Comcast notified him that he was nearing the limit of his "monthly data usage allowance." Jonathan wondered how Comcast was able to send this message, and it turns out that they injected the message code into webpages he was viewing.  

The notice reads: "You have reached 90% of your monthly data usage allowance. Please sign in for more information and to remove this alert."

You can use up to 2.3 gigabytes of data per hour if you're watching streaming in HD resolution, according to the Netflix help system.

Has anyone else seen this warning from Comcast?

Netflix New Releases for August 21st, 2012

Here's the full list of new Netflix DVD releases this week (detailed list): Chimpanzee, Freelancers, One in the Chamber, Wrath of the Titans, Bernie, The Dictator, Hide Away, Virginia, Weekend. Silent House, A Separation, Bonsái, Post Mortem, and Cajun Pawn Stars.

Interesting streaming releases in the past week include Super 8, Wilfred, Seeking Justice, Glengarry Glen Ross, Bill Burr: You People Are All the Same, The Motorcycle Diaries, Durham County, The Final Countdown, and Les Miserables.

Netflix Adds "Post Play" Feature to Streaming Multiple Episodes

Netflix announced a new "Post Play" feature that will stream the next episode of a TV show when one ends, or suggest other titles when you finish a movie.

When you finish watching an episode of a TV show, we’ll minimize the credits and tee-up the next episode. If you do nothing, the next episode will start to play in 15 seconds. You can also stop it to get more information or select another episode. 

When you finish watching a movie, we’ll minimize the credits and offer you three recommendations to try next. If those don’t suit you, you can always go directly to search from post-play or go back to browsing to find something else. 

Netflix posted a video of "Post Play:"

So, what do you think of the way that Netflix added "Post Play?"

Netflix to Add 60+ Fortissimo Indie Titles to Streaming in September

Deadline reports that Netflix has signed a deal to bring more than 60+ independent films from Fortissimo to streaming in September.

Starting in September, arthouse pics from directors including Jiang Wen, Clara Law and Mika Kaurismaki will become available. While some of the features may be a bit obscure for U.S. audiences, many are awards winners from the international festival circuit including Jiang’s 2000 film Devils On The Doorstep, a story set during the Japanese occupation of China which won the Grand Jury prize in Cannes that year. 

Netflix to Launch in Norway, Denmark, Finland & Sweden by End of Year

Netflix just announced that they will be offering streaming in Norway, Denmark, Finland and Sweden by the end of the year. No pricing, title availability, or supported streaming devices were announced.

If you happen to live in any of these countries, you can sign up to be notified when they will launch by visiting the Netflix website.

I'm surprised Netflix didn't launch in Spain, France, Germany, or another European country. 

Thanks to Matt & hat tip to Engadget for the news.

Ever Wonder How Much Bandwidth Netflix Streaming Uses?

While camping last week I wondered how much data I would use to watch a movie on Netflix streaming, and Netflix has a support page about data usage, how to change the setting, and what the default setting is for different countries.  

Netflix: Manage Bandwidth Usage

If you are interested in setting a limit on how much data our service will use, you can adjust your video quality setting. Navigate to Netflix.com/VideoQuality to manage the amount of data you use when playing movies and TV shows on Netflix.

There are 3 settings to choose from:

• Good quality (uses up to 0.3 GB per hour)
• Better quality (uses up to 0.7 GB per hour)
• Best quality (uses up to 1 GB per hour, or up to 2.3 GB per hour if watching HD)

Different regions have different default settings:

• The default setting in the US is “Best”.
• The default setting in Canada is “Good”.
• The default setting in Latin America is “Best,” except in Brazil where it is “Good”.
• The default setting across the UK and Ireland is “Best”.