*spinoff* Comparison of the console's download video services

[deathindustrial]

Since no one is talking about it, should I assume that Netflix's online offering is finally on par with their DVD/BD service?

Not being an American I can't comment on the mail part of the service. What I can say is that I found Netflix via Xbox to be compelling.

When I was last in the US and cooling down after just playing a gig at a friends place in Seattle, firing up their Xbox and browsing the online Netflix catalog I managed to immediately find a cool old Italian euro-trash biker movie I had never seen before. Streaming was painless and the movie looked passable on their 46 inch or so LCD. A quick look seemed to suggest that Netflix had a solid selection of obscure trash, Hong Kong action and art films. Assuming that is true and if this service was available in Canada for the PS3 I would very likely be a subscriber *solely* for the online portion.

To me anyway, the immediacy and selection makes it much more interesting as far as rentals go. I'd also rather pay $20 a month for unlimited movie downloads versus $70+ for cable any day.

Unfortunately Sony has nothing like that on offer (and no video service at all in Canada). Also, their concept of video downloads is seriously gimped (DRM up the ying yang, no all you can eat, far too much focus on mainstream crap you can find anywhere).

I will never buy an Xbox for personal political reasons but I am certainly jealous of the American Netflix option.

IMHO of course.

Cheers

 

[jb]

Netflix's streaming service was to combat BB's swap the mail disc in store deal. I have literally never met a person who has used it and I have told many people about it. I think it's big in the 360 world because many kids attach their parents Netflix account to their Live account, then they can get free TV/movies even if they cannot chose the physical disc to rent.

Hmm I dont know how much of that was true as from what I have read their compression is pretty good and their infrastructure has been able to handle the load. I wanting to believe that they figured out as the end users bandwidth goes up, the more prime they are going to be for digital distribultion.

Anyways I have been a netflix users for years and the last few days have been playing around alot with the streaming service. Just watched season two of the IT Crowd

 

[TheWretched]

Just watched season two of the IT Crowd

I'm disabled^^ (God, I laughed sooo hard when I first saw that scene)

Anyways...

I am from Germany have since to see a service that just remotely rivals what Netflix offers with its VoD service. The only things we do get here are PPV, which are twice as expensive as the usual video rental stores. Which, incidentally get cheaper the more you rent AND you get all the extras etc... ... Plus games. It's a non-service to me. I usually watch my movies in the original languages also, which VoD mostly doesn't provide here either.

5€ or whatever for an HD rental, compared to 2.5€ at my store, which gives me the BDROM with all extras is just too cheap.

 

[specwarGP2]

Netflix on 360 though is the first real incarnation of a viable download service that has the potential to challenge discs, although it's in it's infancy. All the rest are non starters.

Netflix will never be competitive with BD until the studios allow day and date streaming, which they wont.

 

[joker454]

Netflix will never be competitive with BD until the studios allow day and date streaming, which they wont.

The current system is laden with rules designed to skew sales to discs, and what you mention is but one of many limitations designed to do just that. Then again, there was a time the music industry had no interest in making music available via download day and date with discs either. It took 10 or so years, but they finally changed and adapted to the times. Movies will follow suit, although it will probably take more time before the movie industry is dragged into the 21st century. I don't think it will take as long as music did though, assuming the industry has learned anything from history.

 

[Prophecy2k]

The current system is laden with rules designed to skew sales to discs, and what you mention is but one of many limitations designed to do just that. Then again, there was a time the music industry had no interest in making music available via download day and date with discs either. It took 10 or so years, but they finally changed and adapted to the times. Movies will follow suit, although it will probably take more time before the movie industry is dragged into the 21st century. I don't think it will take as long as music did though, assuming the industry has learned anything from history.

I'm not all that sure to be fair. I'd presume it might even take much longer for the movie industry to fully embrace digital download. The biggest factor being the effects of piracy. Piracy, i.e. digital downloads from file sharing sites and torrent sites, affected the music industry much more heavily than the movie industry.

Many people pirating songs were teenagers which made up the vast majority of the market. Many just couldn't see why they should be made to spend £10 for an albumn just for one song when they could get it from bearshare for free. Whereas in contrast a lot less people actually pirate movies from torrent sites.

In fact even before internet piracy, the movie industry still suffered its fair share. But its always not had too great an impact as people will still flock to the cinema for the latest and greatest summer blockbuster, and many still see the value of paying £10 for a Blu-Ray movie on release that can be watched in HD anytime.

Also the size of movies in MB can be a detterent to internet piracy and even the use of digital download services (or streaming services). Mainly for the vast numbers of movie consumers who don't have high-speed broadband or even a broadband internet connection altogether. These folk only have one option and that's physical discs.

I'm sure DD will ever be a contender for physical media when it comes to the movies industry...