Netflix acquires its 500,000th Blu-ray subscriber, is quite pleased
By Darren Murph 
posted December 9th 2008 4:53PM
posted December 9th 2008 4:53PM
No one really blinked when Netflix announced that it would begin implementing a $1 per month fee for the right to rent Blu-ray Discs, but quite a few folks took notice when it said it hoped to have half a million of these very customers before 2009. Here we are just weeks from next year, and Netflix has already surpassed its goal. The outfit's CFO stated today that the rate at which it was signing up new BD subscribers was actually quicker than anticipated, and chief content officer Ted Sarandos confessed that it would begin "promoting Blu-ray inside its mailing envelopes next year." No surprises here, really -- the first thing we'd do after coming home with a $128 Blu-ray player and no overpriced films would be to fire up a new account to get the rentals flowing.
They are real close to losing a subscriber because of the time it takes to get popular BluRay titles. I've had some recent releases in my queue for weeks and no sign of them every shipping them to me. Clearly they took the extra money for BluRay rentals and pocketed rather than getting enough copies of popular titles to come anywhere near meeting demand
How is this different than the standard DVD releases. All of the releases in my queue that came out in the past month are still 'Long Wait' or 'Very Long Wait'
If it wasn't for the view instantly feature, I would have canceled my service with them for the 3rd time already.
Yeah, they are killing me with "Hancock"... It's been on "Very Long Wait" status since release.
well, i'm sure they dont wanna lose ya. but they'll still have another 499,999 members in ranks. And w/ that $1 increase thats an extra $5,999,988 bucks in their pockets of pure margin. Good business move netflix.
The second thing? Wonder why Iron Man and Tropic Thunder won't play, and struggle to get the needed firmware patch burned to CD and installed on your new player. Don't worry, you'll get used to the process as you do it monthly.
Why did HD-DVD lose again?
Both of them played fine on my player. Just get a PS3. Problem solved.
I've been really happy with my Netflix BD rentals. I must live in an area that doesn't have many BD renters. There's be a couple of short delays but no more so than DVD rentals of the same movies. I have about a three day turn around. It's certainly worth the extra buck. Saved me from buying some real turkeys.
i just upgraded my firmware on my blu-ray player the minute i got it in the door today and i wonder if im the 500,000 subscriber cuz i signed up on saturday LOL probably not but ive never had issues with netflix there usually quick with shipping there movies out depending on the movie you get,most of the stuff i rent is stuff that came out within the past 3 months that way i dont have issues ever
Do they actually have any BD's in stock? When I was a member a year or so ago, they never had any BDs in stock. I was a member before they started imposing a fee for BD rentals and the format war was not over yet.
Have things changed at Netflix? Or do they still need to order WAY MORE BD's to meet demand?
I just got The Dark Knight on Blu-ray from them today.
I got Dark Knight from them today as well. I've got Hellboy 2, among others, as very long wait though so I don't see much rhyme or reason to their Blu-Ray deliveries... Also got Wall-E when it first came out and a few others so, yeah, they've come through. Not always but, for me, more often than not, but only on the newest titles.
Sure, let me know where I can get a PS3 (or any other profile 2.0 BD player) for $128, and your point will have been made. You gonna pay the difference, since it "solves the problem"?
It's the poor fools who are buying profile 1.1 players without knowing the whole story about BD that are being hosed here.
Yahoo Yahoo.....but Netflix really has not been purshasing any more copies of new blu-ray titles. If you don't get it mailed to you on release day or the day before, you are listed as VERY LONG WAIT. I had a feeling they would take the extra $1.00 and just keep it instead of upping the number of copies of new films on blu. As for older titles, it is rare that it is not available, so they are buying more back catalog, but new releases continue to be very long waits if you don't get them on the first shipping. I find that Blockbuster buys more copies, I belong to both and it's usually Blockbuster that sends out the new release to me, not Netflix. They are making new releases much more available.
I'm sure if they're now aiming at increasing their blu-ray subscribers even more, they will now invest in more copies for that growing user base. w00t.
Ummm...they all ready advertise Blu-ray on the inside cover.
I haven't had to wait yet for any Blu-ray movies in my queue.
I always have long waits on my queue, and they have to yet to pick up the blu-ray version of dark city or LA confidential. Please add those movies to your queue just so they pick them up.