Netflix, the popular DVD rental and online streaming service, announced today that it is drastically changing pricing. Beginning immediately for new customers, and on September 1 for existing customers, if you want to stream movies and get DVDs in the mail, you will have to pay for two seperate plans.
Yeah.
Netflix is now offering new plans for getting DVDs in the mail, and its "streaming online only plan" will remain the same. The big change is the plans that include both are being scrapped. Emails are already being sent out to customers to explain the change to their subscription. In a nutshell, for customers currently enjoy streaming and in-mail rentals, the monthly price will jump about $5.
For instance, right now Netflix offers existing customers an "Unlimited Streaming + 2 DVDs out at-a-time (Unlimited) Plan" for $14.99 + tax. If you are a new customer today, or after September 1 for everyone, to maintain that same service, you will have to subscribe separately to an "Unlimited Streaming Plan" for as well as a "2 DVDs" plan for $19.98 + tax.
So, pick your streaming plan and then pick your DVD in the mail plan. Here is a break down of the new pricing:
- Unlimited Streaming Plan: $7.99
- 1 DVD out at-a-time Plan: $7.99
- 2 DVD out at-a-time Plan: $11.99
- 3 DVD out at-a-time Plan: $15.99
- 4 DVD out at-a-time Plan: $21.99
- 5 DVD out at-a-time Plan: $27.99
- 6 DVD out at-a-time Plan: $32.99
- 7 DVD out at-a-time Plan: $37.99
- 8 DVD out at-a-time Plan: $43.99
Combined price of most popular plans:
- 1 DVD out at-a-time with Streaming Plan: $15.98
- 2 DVDs out at-a-time with Streaming Plan: $19.98
- 3 DVDs out at-a-time with Streaming Plan: $23.98
Netflix says the plans "better reflect the costs" of each plan. Maybe. But it still stings.
Tsettos
July 14, 2011 at 6:37am
I think this is a very poor decision by them to do this. Their streaming library is not current enough to justify this split pricing plan. Not to mention the technical issues they have. So not worth the extra expense. I will be terminating my account in September as well.
mgajhar
July 13, 2011 at 6:13am
I order a DVD through the mail occasionally and resort to the streaming library when I'm desperate though the offerings are extensive but pretty much of no interest. Still, for $10/mo. it seemed a justifiable expense. The increase has made me reconsider the cost-benefit and I will cancel my subscription on September 1. If they offered streaming at $7.99 with an option to order DVDs by mail a la carte for something unavailable in the streaming library I would stay but $7.99/ mo. for something I use so rarely doesn't make sense. For the same $15 I can order three current release films on VOD and it's unlikely I would do that every month. This seems like a big blunder by Netflix to me and I wonder how many other subscribers they'll lose. With all the other options out there, they just made themselves uncompetitive, to my way of thinking.
MacMike
July 13, 2011 at 5:13am
If they want more money, how about fixing the streaming issue with Netflix on the latest AppleTV? If you Google this issue you'll see LOTS of people saying there are issues and neither Netflix nor Apple seems to be willing to address this. Now Netflix wants more of my money?! This move might actually cost them some customers who already weren't too happy with their service.
hypersapien
July 12, 2011 at 4:54pm
I've been pretty disappointed with netflix for the last year or two. I've been a subscriber twice, both instances ended after a couple months. I continuously try to give myself a reason to be a customer of theirs, but their streaming library continues to disappoint. The bulk of their online library are movies that no one wanted to see, even when they were new 20 years ago.
Here's a short list of movies I told myself I would re-subscribe for, if they were available to stream (but aren't).
The Hurt locker (2009): Not available
The Road (2009): Not available
Casino Royale (2006): Not availableIn contrast to movies they do have:
G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra
Gamer
The One
diedrichg
July 12, 2011 at 3:04pm
This is such bull$41+ !!! They aren't getting another dime out of me. I will probably continue my dvd subscription but I'll be opting out of the streaming. What a racquet.
Snarkicist
July 12, 2011 at 12:36pm
I've had a Netflix subscription for around 8 years, I think. They really changed the way movie rentals worked. Their streaming content has certainly increased dramatically in the past few years. It used to be abysmal, but there's now a fair amount of content available of decent quality. Netflix poses enough of a threat to established production studios that many of them are trying to rein in the amount of content Netflix may stream. No HBO series are available for streaming through Netflix. Showtime will not allow any new series to be streamed. Netflix is disrupting their business model, and in order to remain a power player in this realm, Netflix must increase its prices. Mailing costs have increased significantly too. I've always wondered what kind of royalties Netflix pays for streaming content. With the amount I use it, if they have to pay more than 50 cents an episode, they're losing money on me.
Hopefully Netflix will be able to continue to expand its library of titles available for streaming. Maybe it will partner with a production studio like HBO and have to increase prices again in order to provide premium content.
Netflix has been an excellent service provider, and I plan to stick with them a while longer to see what else they can do. (I may drop my 1 DVD at a time plan and go solely with streaming, though.)
jdlandry
July 12, 2011 at 12:24pm
I don't see how Netflix can justify a price increase. I've been a member for 5 years now and I'm already paying twice what I signed up for. Now their new hit movies are delayed 28 days and the majority of new streaming videos are foreign or cartoons. I think September 1st. will be the day my divorce from Netflix will be final.
Internet providers are already phasing out their unlimited internet plans. Watching the streaming movies are sending people over their data plan and costing more money there. Now that new TVs and DVD players have built in wifi and can receive streaming video, the phone companies feel left out because they have been offering unlimited access. It's not costing them more, they just want a bigger piece of the internet dollar that up until now has been bypassing them.
TheBreen
July 12, 2011 at 11:56am
I've been a Netflix customer for nearly a year, and this is the second price increase since I signed up. First a 10% increase in November, now a (potential) 60% increase on September 1st. The streaming service simply doesn't have the catalog to support the price increase, so I guess I'll watch as many DVDs as possible over the next five or six weeks, then cancel.
It's cute how they say the new prices will begin immediately "for new customers," as if there will be any.
@TheBreen
Fion
July 12, 2011 at 1:43pm
I have to be honest, I watched more Netflix when it was DVD only. I hardly have time to peruse that major streaming library, and even then I can never settle on anything to watch and just default to what I've got available anyway.
