I pit Netflix! Their selection of movies is so limited! And, why do they list movies that are “not available”??? I mean, what’s the point? As for raising their DVDs by mail rates? Fine! They sure know how to win friends and influence people!
I hope others will express their frustatrations here.
I typically find their selection (physical, not instant) to be pretty damn good, especially for older movies that I like. As for ‘not available’ IME that usually means they had it but for some reason no longer have it anymore. Still though, as long as it’s listed, at least you can still put it on your queue.
Did they raise their ‘by mail’ rates again? They raised them a while ago, but I haven’t seen a recent hike (the up coming fee for Instant not included).
I’m still on the fence about what I’m going to do. I’ve rented sooo many movies that every time I send one in I spend 20 minutes trying to figure out what to get next and decide to cancel the physical DVDs, but their Instant selection sucks so I’m not really ready to make the jump to instant only. Besides, I just got a Blu-Ray player a few months ago and I’d like to use it for a while.
OTOH, I’m hoping with more people choosing instant only they can expand their instant selection and I can drop the physical DVDs.
The biggest problem with Netflix is they are so dominant in the market that the studios and other media sources are doing everything they can to break them down. They fear that if Netflix can becomes the primary source for everyone the balance of power will be totally shifted to Netflix.
Compared to what? Your local video store?
Netflix has basically the biggest selection of movies ever offered to anyone, anywhere, in the history of the world. It includes Hollywood blockbusters and quirky independents; it includes documentaries and comedies; it includes thousands and thousands of movies. I’m not sure how that qualifies as limited.
As far as i’m concerned, the only reasonable application of the word “limited” to Netflix’s selection applies to their streaming selection, and their Blu-Ray selection, both of which are improving, and will continue to improve as Netflix negotiates with the movie industry.
Because, over time, plenty of those movies become available.
A long time ago, i wanted to see Chaplin, with Robery Downey, Jr. At the time, it was not available, but i put it in my queue anyway. Then, when it became available, it was already there and i put it to the top of my list.
What does it hurt to have unavailable movies on their site? If they didn’t list the movie at all, they’d probably get thousands of inquiries asking why it wasn’t there. Better to put it up, and just let people know that they don’t (yet) have it.
Well, while i don’t like paying more money for stuff that i like, the fact is that Netflix’s costs are skyrocketing as they negotiate new terms with the movie industry. When Netflix first began streaming content, they got good deals from the studios because streaming was still a relatively small percentage of the market. Now that streaming is huge, and the movie industry recognizes that millions of people want to watch their products this way, they are driving a much harder bargain with Netflix for access to their products.
As Strassia notes, the movie industry is actually pretty worried about Netflix. Industry execs are concerned about Netflix’s market domination, and are currently struggling between trying to circumvent Netflix, on the one hand, and trying to use Netflix to increase their income, on the other.
OK.
I’m frustrated that so many of your thousands of OPs on this message board are so fucking stupid. I am, however, happy that you’ve finally put one in the Pit so i can tell you that. 
As mentioned above, the complaint about “limited selection” is stupid. Yes, there are movies out there that Netflix doesn’t have (I’ve been trying to get hold of the Canadian film “At Home By Myself With You” for a while now), but their selection is huge.
As for the recent rate increase, it doesn’t bother me at all. I don’t like streaming films from them because of (sometimes) degraded video quality, limited selection, and because of the sluggish response of the remote. While the price for comparable service did go up when they split their pricing for DVD and streaming videos, I just canceled the streaming and now I actually pay less than I did before.
I don’t understand this at all. Too damn many people have been spoiled. It’s like the Louis CK routine where he makes fun of people bitching about not getting internet access in airplanes. Five years ago, did you expect to have access to what NetFlix provides? And don’t talk to me about them changing their prices. They gave us three months notice (what other company does that?) and it is still not going to be expensive if you look at it with some fucking perspective. Yes, they don’t provide every movie ever made for free, but get the fuck over it and take a second to think, “You know… Compared to how things used to be, I’m getting a lot more than I’m paying for.”
I think Netflix deserves pitting over their series of increasingly awful interfaces. Their interface people need to be fired. From a cannon. Into a pit of agitated badgers.
You are not alone. Jinx - just shut the fuck up already.
Amen. I’d like to know what the OP is used to that has better selection. Streaming from the future maybe?
I was a member of Netflix before they had streaming. I plan to drop the streaming and just keep the DVDs by mail. I plan to keep an eye on the streaming and turn it back on for a month when they get some stuff I want to watch. There just isn’t enough new stuff on streaming to justify keeping it 12 months a year.
I got Netflix a few months ago. I’m not sure I’m going to keep it after they jacked-up the price. It got me into Dexter. I’m waiting for season 5 to release before I think about pulling the plug on the service. Is Mad Men worth getting into? TV shows are a little harder for me to get into because there’s so much to watch. I hesitate to watch Arrested Development again, (even though the movie seems to be on it’s way), just because it’s so much time to devote.
After watching all the movies I thought really missed out on, I just got bored with it. Though I took the time to rate all the movies I’ve seen, it doesn’t seem to know my taste. The movies I’m most attracted to are the ones that I’ve seen and had rated highly that show up under the “Watch Again” category.
Don’t be disappointed when you find out that stuff goes in and out of streaming. Something that is streaming today might not be streaming next month.
I love Netflix. I have two discs at a time and streaming and plan to keep it. I’ve been pretty happy with their rating system too. I’ve seen a bunch of fun stuff that I never would have watched had I not seen them rate it 4+ stars for me.
Anyway, it’s not like your local utility. You’re not stuck with them. Cancel the service and find something better. Or, better yet, do something useful for once in your life and create a better service that costs less.
I know this is about American Netflix, but I’m still going to bitch about Canadian Netflix. So we don’t have DVDs by mail at all, it’s all streaming. Except our streaming service is even shittier than the American one. Basically, you get A&E series and children’s shows. I guess it’d be awesome if all I wanted to do was watch Intervention and Hoarders all damn day.
We do have a couple of rent by mail companies over here, but I was really wanting the streaming.
Mad Men is definitely worth getting into. I would also recommend getting into Sons of Anarchy and Rescue Me, both available on Instant View.
My wife and i were very happy when Mad Men arrived on Instant Streaming a couple of weeks back. We’re now rewatching the whole series from the beginning.
I don’t remember any of his other OPs. Are there any particularly stupid ones that stand out?
Pretty much all of them in GQ. It’s gotten much, much better but Jinx used to spam the fuck out of GQ with some of the stupidest shit imaginable.
I know about that, but the stuff I really care about I can get on DVD anyway.
No one is forcing you to use NetFlix for movies. If you aren’t satisfied, stop using the service.