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In a Q&A with Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, Reuters reveals that the company does not have any "short term" plans to bring video viewing and/or streaming to the iPhone and iPod touch. Netflix is instead continuing to focus its efforts on its core TV-based business and consumer electronics such as Blu-ray players and video game systems associated with that medium.
Reuters: Any plans to work in partnership with Apple and the iPhone?
Hastings: it’s something that’s likely to come over time. But nothing in the short term. (With) movie watching, we are not focused on mobile yet, but (instead) on the TV, on Blu-ray and on the video game consoles. We will get to mobile eventually, including the iPhone.
Hastings' comments conflict with a relatively recent report claiming that the company would "soon offer" its streaming service, known as "Watch Instantly", on the iPhone and iPod touch.

Article Link: No Netflix Streaming to iPhone in Near Future?
 

Jeff321

macrumors member
Jul 1, 2008
84
23
If they released this I'd probably renew my Netflix subscription. Even under the assumption that it will be WiFi only.
 

Michael CM1

macrumors 603
Feb 4, 2008
5,681
276
This is zero shock to anybody who knows anything about Netflix. They just gave a $1M prize for video recommendation software. Netflix's prime interest right now is increasing the home streaming, mainly the number of videos and working toward getting newer stuff. Considering the app would obviously be WiFi only and Netflix uses Silverlight for its online streaming, it would be quite the haul to develop an app.

For all the whiners who will continue to complain about "crippling" apps like this and Sirius XM, do the mildest bit of homework. Yeah, I'd love to be able to stream anything everywhere, but the reality is nobody in the US has the network to handle all of this traffic alone. This may be possible when the iPhone opens up to others, but AT&T's 3G network would get slammed in places like NYC and San Fran if this and other bandwidth-hoggers were allowed free reign. You're probably going to have to wait on 4G to get the necessary backbone for this.
 

The Phazer

macrumors 68030
Oct 31, 2007
2,997
928
London, UK
This is no great surprise. The iPhone doesn't have the security round streaming that the movie studios require (most studio contracts require RTMPE or better nowadays. There's no encrypted streaming at all to an iPhone), and Netflix very, very probably hasn't been granted rights by the studio to stream it's content to mobiles.

Same reasons Hulu isn't happening either, despite the repeated claims there.

Phazer
 

michaelsviews

macrumors 65816
Sep 25, 2007
1,476
467
New England
No worries, there network will break

Its taken AT&T how long to get there network up to speed for mms?:confused:

And now you want to stream Netflix to the iPhone? :rolleyes:

This would surely cripple or maybe bring there "3G" to a stand still. :mad:
 

iOrlando

macrumors 68000
Jul 20, 2008
1,811
1
im still not sold on this whole watch movies on my iphone. maybe when i am stuck on a train or something but i dont know. I guess if it is included in my monthly rate..maybe i would be more likely to use it.
 

Rojo

macrumors 65816
Sep 26, 2006
1,328
241
Barcelona
Eh.

This really doesn't interest me that much anyway....yet.

First, I'm not exactly that thrilled with Netflix's "instant watch" offerings to begin with. Out of over 100 movies in my queue at the moment, only a handful are "instant watch" -- and they're the least desirable on the list.

Second, as much as people want such an app to be 3G-capable, I just don't see streaming on a phone network working all that smoothly. And wifi is so hard to come by, except at home -- in which case why would I watch something on my phone, when I can watch it on my computer?

Third, and most important, unless there's a way to quickly download a (temporary) Netflix movie in order to watch it on the subway or on a plane, I don't see ANY other place I would likely watch something that's streamable only.

If all the above changed, I would be all over this app. (Who wouldn't?). But for now, I'm very ok with there being no plans...
 

Lightbrazer

macrumors member
Jul 27, 2008
57
8
I think Netflix is missing the boat on this one and I'll tell you why. I'm not about to run out and buy and xbox or ps3 because I have very little time for such things. I also don't want to sit at my computer for hours at a time and watch a movie, so even though I get streaming access with my Netflix I rarely watch it. Now if Netflix allowed streaming to my phone, even if it was only over WIFI I'd certainly want to buy a TV OUT cable for my phone which Netflix could conveniently start selling, thus allowing me to stream the movie from my computer straight to my phone and thus straght to any TV in my house. I also could then go to any of my friends houses, log in to my Netflix account there and carrying the phone which is always on me anyway and only one extra cable I could bring a ton of movies to their house too! I think people are missing the big picture, it's not just about watching the movies on the phone, it's about having the ability to use the phone to put them on any tv in any house that has wifi (like every friend I have). Ditto with Netflix saying we don't want to concentrate on mobile we want to concentrate on the game consoles because of TV. Well duh, sell a tv out cable on netflix.com for the iphone and then you are concentrating on the tv. I think this would be far more useful than the tom tom adapter that got over hyped. LOOK BIG not small.
 

Full of Win

macrumors 68030
Nov 22, 2007
2,615
1
Ask Apple
Said with my fingers in my ears and my eyes closed

LA LA LA.. I DON'T HEAR YOU- MY IPHONE WILL PLAY NETFLICKS MOVIES - MY IPHONE WILL PLAY NETFLICKS MOVIES- MY IPHONE WILL PLAY NETFLICKS MOVIES- LA LA LA
 

God of Biscuits

macrumors regular
Sep 17, 2007
234
559
AT&T, err, I mean Apple, would likely reject it anyway because it's a good thing Netflix iPhone owners want.

Yes, sayer of idiotic things, Apple looks to see what people want and designs their entire business strategy and product line around what's left in the world besides that set of things people want.

Works every time.
 

God of Biscuits

macrumors regular
Sep 17, 2007
234
559
Said with my fingers in my ears and my eyes closed

LA LA LA.. I DON'T HEAR YOU- MY IPHONE WILL PLAY NETFLICKS MOVIES - MY IPHONE WILL PLAY NETFLICKS MOVIES- MY IPHONE WILL PLAY NETFLICKS MOVIES- LA LA LA


well, at least your behavior is consistent across politics and personal desire.
 

God of Biscuits

macrumors regular
Sep 17, 2007
234
559
How about with AppleTV with Netflix?

This is probably the more likely thing, and where the rumors get muddled. the AppleTV already has a YouTube client built in and I wouldn't be surprised if Apple snuck a TiVo playback client in it, too—remember, they're a hardware company.

Sell you an AppleTV for that bedroom TV so that you can stream content off the TiVoHD in your livingroom to your bedroom TV. You probably weren't going to rent a movie from iTunes there for worrying about falling asleep during it, but if you could stream netflix and also stream TiVo content to it, you'd buy one in a second and just hook that up to your bedroom TV. It makes no noise and you can use your iPhone (which is already on your nightstand) to control it.
 

Randman

macrumors 65816
Jul 28, 2008
1,329
9
Jacksonville, Fla
Yes, sayer of idiotic things, Apple looks to see what people want and designs their entire business strategy and product line around what's left in the world besides that set of things people want.

Works every time.

Which is why we have MMS.

Which is why we have tethering.

Which is why we have GVoice apps such as GV Mobile still.

Which is why many TV streaming apps aren't handicapped so much that they're basically a joke.

But thanks for playing. We have some nice parting gifts for you.
 

God of Biscuits

macrumors regular
Sep 17, 2007
234
559
Which is why we have MMS.

Which is why we have tethering.

Which is why we have GVoice apps such as GV Mobile still.

Which is why many TV streaming apps aren't handicapped so much that they're basically a joke.

But thanks for playing. We have some nice parting gifts for you.


Apple decided not to give you MMS and Tethering, didn't you know? And GVoice is a competitor not everything is known yet about how it will alter the landscape, or how it will impact at&t.

Apple's handicapping TV streaming apps? How so? At&t opens the floodgates and Apple says, whoa there! people WANT that and for that reason only, we're going to shut it all down!

Yeah, that's Apple's game.

It's a wonder you bother with them at all.

Assuming you do. And if you don't, you're the very definition of a troll.
 

ob81

macrumors 65816
Jun 11, 2007
1,406
356
Virginia Beach
Well, this is not something that I really care for. That netflix stream que is pretty weak anyway. I can't see how people care for it.
 

Xibalba

macrumors 6502
Feb 20, 2009
322
0
Indiana, USA
as neat as this might be to have, i really doubt i would ever use this on a regular basis. i already rarely use the streaming netflix on my mac nor my blu-ray player. it would still be an impressive proof of concept.
 

xIGmanIx

macrumors 6502a
Dec 21, 2008
835
0
i guess i don't see why it shouldn't be allowed, however i would have to say why? to each his own, but this wouldn't be listed in a top 20 requested features for the iPhone OS. Not a bad thought though
 

Full of Win

macrumors 68030
Nov 22, 2007
2,615
1
Ask Apple
Well, this is not something that I really care for. That netflix stream que is pretty weak anyway. I can't see how people care for it.

Compared to what? If you mean their DVD collection, then yes. However, relative to other streaming services, I think its pretty broad.
 

alent1234

macrumors 603
Jun 19, 2009
5,688
170
Netflix uses Microsoft Silverlight to stream its movie library. If it were to come to Apple devices than Apple would have to support Silverlight or Netflix would have to pay to set up another infrastructure to stream movies to Apple users
 
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