Netflix should fire its CEO and get back to normal

[nutmac]

You already manage two separate queues. It's going to be on separate sites in the future, but that's a small change and in no way "punishes customers."

And in addition to having to use separate queues (I normally treat my DVD/BD queue for both instant viewing and DVD management), little things like movie ratings and recommendation engine data won't be shared.

Essentially, Netflix sees writings on the wall for DVD/BD business and wants to write it off ASAP. But the move strikes as premature and hostile to customers using both services. Surely, it wouldn't take much effort to replicate data across two services to provide better user experience. But Netflix chooses to make it harder for customers to use their service WHILE charging more and reducing streaming contents (which isn't entirely Netflix's fault, but we, as a customer are suffering and paying more for it).

Look, I realize streaming is the wave of the future and how content providers waging price war has forced Netflix to separate two businesses. But the move is very poorly executed, entirely at the expense of making customer experience as poor as possible (even qwikster.com is very hard to remember and type correctly).

 

[Nostromo]

I for one canceled my netflix streaming service and activated hulu plus. The selection just wasn't there.

This could be the main problem.

I for example have no interest in streaming - I tried it, didn't like the low quality.

So I changed my Netflix membership to discs only (I was paying for streaming so far, even though I didn't use it).

This actually led to a price drop of about 30%, and not to the price increase that Netflix was aiming at.

I may have been a bit emotional in regard to Mr. Hastings, a man whose executive office location currently is between a rock and a hard place. But I don't think he handled the crisis well. If you want to raise your prices a lot, you need to explain why e.g. : content providers want more money, etc.

If I had interest in streaming, the price increase wouldn't have shocked me at all. Compare Netflix cost to what you used to pay renting out DVDs at Blockbuster.

I just hope that the DVD rental business will not go down under this way.

That's all I'm hoping for, until streaming becomes as good in quality as watching a disc.

Currently I don't see an alternative to watching movies on DVDs or Blu-Ray.

And if content providers want more share on DVD rentals... how much per rented DVD are we talking about?

 

[Risasi]

What are you talking about RE: "low quality". That sounds like more of an issue with your internet connection than that of content quality...or perhaps the device you're using to play the streaming?

I run a 3Mbit connection in my house. Our family uses their service on AppleTV2 on the main TV, both our laptops, the ipad and my phone. The perceived picture quality on all has trumped DVD. Blueray obviously not. I guess when we used a Wii and Xbox 360 to stream there were more quality issues. But since putting in the AppleTV it's been flawless.

----

Anyway, all that aside. We pay $8 a month for our monthly content, no cable. With the rare exception of buying (keepers, like Pixar movies) or renting (A-list not available on NF) something from iTunes. I ditched the two DVD plan we had in August. Sold the Xbox. If we want to watch a DVD we first have to use Handbrake. But even that's too much hassle. I've already decided I don't want media floating around any more. It all comes down to price point. I am unwilling to spend more than about $20 a mo on video content.

The movie industry can eat my shorts, they need to stop with their 1950's Hollywood gangster mentality. Netflix augmented with iTunes provides me with what I want. If you're willing to pay more, you can get better content, more power to you, go for it. But complaining about NF not providing everything you want at such a cheap price just makes guys like you seem like they want their cake, my cake and to eat it too. I still think they are the best streaming game in town.

 

[Nostromo]

What are you talking about RE: "low quality". That sounds like more of an issue with your internet connection than that of content quality...or perhaps the device you're using to play the streaming?

I run a 3Mbit connection in my house. Our family uses their service on AppleTV2 on the main TV, both our laptops, the ipad and my phone. The perceived picture quality on all has trumped DVD. Blueray obviously not. I guess when we used a Wii and Xbox 360 to stream there were more quality issues. But since putting in the AppleTV it's been flawless.

----

Anyway, all that aside. We pay $8 a month for our monthly content, no cable. With the rare exception of buying (keepers, like Pixar movies) or renting (A-list not available on NF) something from iTunes. I ditched the two DVD plan we had in August. Sold the Xbox. If we want to watch a DVD we first have to use Handbrake. But even that's too much hassle. I've already decided I don't want media floating around any more. It all comes down to price point. I am unwilling to spend more than about $20 a mo on video content.

The movie industry can eat my shorts, they need to stop with their 1950's Hollywood gangster mentality. Netflix augmented with iTunes provides me with what I want. If you're willing to pay more, you can get better content, more power to you, go for it. But complaining about NF not providing everything you want at such a cheap price just makes guys like you seem like they want their cake, my cake and to eat it too. I still think they are the best streaming game in town.

I'm on a 10 mbs connection.

So the internet connection is not the issue.

Probably that watching video on a computer screen is still no match for a TV set.

Are you watching Netflix streaming on a plasma screen?

I can't really believe streaming trumps DVD in quality. Or is the stream now HD? What data rate/compression?

 

[Risasi]

Hi,

No plasma TV. It's just an el-cheapo 32" 1080p Vizio. Some of it is content specific, so I'd say it's a mix of the equivalent 480 and 720 that we get for most of our netflix streams. I doubt they will ever deliver blueray quality, so point for disc media.

Granted I suppose it's possible that some of that poor quality perception could be related to the type and size of your screen. So you watch mostly on a computer? It should actually be the opposite, the smaller the screen the less the perceived quality issues. In fact a DVD rip on my ipad looks fantastic. But I can't really tell the difference between it and an SD feed from Netflix.

And there is certainly something to the streaming device affecting quality. The Wii was the worst for us. It would constantly have to re-buffer, video artifacts. The Xbox was annoying, it would drop from HD to SD and back all the time. Since we got the Apple TV we haven't seen any of those issues. About the worst we experience is the video and audio going out of sync, on the rare occasion the image might pixelate for a brief second. But I think that's just because I'm a tightwad and haven't upped my 3 Mbit connection yet, and/or changed out my crap wifi router.


I actually think disc media has a place, but it's becoming less useful except to people who can't get a highspeed connection.
Food for thought - what happens if the US Postal Service starts cutting back hours and days?
If they only do 3 days a week delivery you're going to need a 6-disc plan if you watch video with any regularity.

Likewise, if ISP's start capping bandwidth, that's a game changer too. I don't think I'll go back to media though. I'll probably just watch less and use iTunes only.

Time will tell...

 

[LizKat]

I wouldn't go as far as call Reed Hastings incompetent, but mistakes have been made. Whatever the reasons, you don't make the product worse AND charge more for it, which is what Netflix recently did.

At the very least, Netflix should've coincide price increase with some improvements in service.

Quirky name aside, Qwikster seems to be at least adding values, such as video game rental. But having to manage two separate queues (Qwikster and Netflix) unnecessarily punishes customers and demonstrates "I don't care" attitude that Netflix is increasing taking.

Quirky name aside... right... well, you know what, for some reason I just wasn't able to put that name aside. I cancelled my subscription just over that.

I was happy when they separated the product offerings because I felt at least I was paying only for what I can use, which is the DVD side. The price was worth it to me. But that name change was the pits.

Somebody has a solid tin ear at Netflix. Qwikster sounds to me like a lunchtime hookup at the Shady Times Motor Court, or (more realistically) a solid tin-ear clue to what's going to happen next: someone or something will scarf up Qwikster, load it up with debt by the second quarter of next year and then file for bankruptcy and write off the licensing contract breakages or whatever as a nice juicy loss, making everyone happy except DVD renters.

Anyway I cancelled my subscription because there's no way I'm going to log into some website called Qwikster. Just not going to happen. I'll buy iTunes movies once in awhile instead.

If they changed the name to something reasonable, like Movies by Mail or whatever, I'd sign up again tomorrow. Sometimes "a rose by any other name is..." a real stinker.

Don't you wonder where they get the wackos who end up in focus groups and determine at least 50% of the attributes of the stuff we use every day, from flavors of toothpaste, or how much sugar and salt in cereal, or the names of flippin' DVD rental services?

 

[tigres]

Quirky name aside... right... well, you know what, for some reason I just wasn't able to put that name aside. I cancelled my subscription just over that.

I was happy when they separated the product offerings because I felt at least I was paying only for what I can use, which is the DVD side. The price was worth it to me. But that name change was the pits.

Somebody has a solid tin ear at Netflix. Qwikster sounds to me like a lunchtime hookup at the Shady Times Motor Court, or (more realistically) a solid tin-ear clue to what's going to happen next: someone or something will scarf up Qwikster, load it up with debt by the second quarter of next year and then file for bankruptcy and write off the licensing contract breakages or whatever as a nice juicy loss, making everyone happy except DVD renters.

Anyway I cancelled my subscription because there's no way I'm going to log into some website called Qwikster. Just not going to happen. I'll buy iTunes movies once in awhile instead.

If they changed the name to something reasonable, like Movies by Mail or whatever, I'd sign up again tomorrow. Sometimes "a rose by any other name is..." a real stinker.

Don't you wonder where they get the wackos who end up in focus groups and determine at least 50% of the attributes of the stuff we use every day, from flavors of toothpaste, or how much sugar and salt in cereal, or the names of flippin' DVD rental services?

Heh, I like your style. Principals.

 

[grapes911]

Quirky name aside... right... well, you know what, for some reason I just wasn't able to put that name aside. I cancelled my subscription just over that.

I'd still purchase the new iPhone is Apple changed their name to Asparagus Inc. It's only a name and has no bearing on the product or service. I can only think of two logical reasons why a name, no matter how stupid it may be, would cause you to cancel a service. 1) This is just an excuse to cancel, you didn't want the service anyway, and you really weren't happy. 2) This a joke and I missed the punchline.

 

[Nostromo]

Hi,

No plasma TV. It's just an el-cheapo 32" 1080p Vizio. Some of it is content specific, so I'd say it's a mix of the equivalent 480 and 720 that we get for most of our netflix streams. I doubt they will ever deliver blueray quality, so point for disc media.

Granted I suppose it's possible that some of that poor quality perception could be related to the type and size of your screen. So you watch mostly on a computer? It should actually be the opposite, the smaller the screen the less the perceived quality issues. In fact a DVD rip on my ipad looks fantastic. But I can't really tell the difference between it and an SD feed from Netflix.

And there is certainly something to the streaming device affecting quality. The Wii was the worst for us. It would constantly have to re-buffer, video artifacts. The Xbox was annoying, it would drop from HD to SD and back all the time. Since we got the Apple TV we haven't seen any of those issues. About the worst we experience is the video and audio going out of sync, on the rare occasion the image might pixelate for a brief second. But I think that's just because I'm a tightwad and haven't upped my 3 Mbit connection yet, and/or changed out my crap wifi router.


I actually think disc media has a place, but it's becoming less useful except to people who can't get a highspeed connection.
Food for thought - what happens if the US Postal Service starts cutting back hours and days?
If they only do 3 days a week delivery you're going to need a 6-disc plan if you watch video with any regularity.

Likewise, if ISP's start capping bandwidth, that's a game changer too. I don't think I'll go back to media though. I'll probably just watch less and use iTunes only.

Time will tell...

Generally, a DVD looks better on a TV screen.

I'm staying with Netflix (or Qwxtstyrffrruafl or whatever name they chose) as those DVDs in the mail have become a fixture.

Video on a computer screen will look crappy because of the upsizing to the computer screen display. I can either watch it small and sharp, or large and blurry. So I decided not to watch streaming at all until it looks good.

Quirky name aside... right... well, you know what, for some reason I just wasn't able to put that name aside. I cancelled my subscription just over that.

I was happy when they separated the product offerings because I felt at least I was paying only for what I can use, which is the DVD side. The price was worth it to me. But that name change was the pits.

Somebody has a solid tin ear at Netflix. Qwikster sounds to me like a lunchtime hookup at the Shady Times Motor Court, or (more realistically) a solid tin-ear clue to what's going to happen next:

To me Qwikster or Qwksfretor (or was it Qwikskrfrkrskskrksrpph?) is also an insult.

Netflix is a strong brand name, and it's a bad idea to dilute it.

I had preferred two names, "Netflix Disc" and "Netflix Stream".

As this name change had to do with Hastings' worry about investors being turned off by meager (if at all) growth rates, he could have said: "Well almost everybody HAS alread Netflix Disk, but where we'll grow is Netflix Stream".

Try to get an investor to put up money for Qwiksfrkrfrkstttr-ssss.

PS: The agence who did the naming should go bankrupt. I can only imagine that Qwikster was the only .com name available in connection with "Quick".

 

[aristobrat]

As ridiculous as the name 'iPad' initially sounded to some when it was officially announced by Apple (OMG it sounds like a feminine hygiene product!!), it eventually became a name that people say and don't think twice about.

I think Qwikster will be the same way.

 

[LizKat]

I'd still purchase the new iPhone is Apple changed their name to Asparagus Inc. It's only a name and has no bearing on the product or service. I can only think of two logical reasons why a name, no matter how stupid it may be, would cause you to cancel a service. 1) This is just an excuse to cancel, you didn't want the service anyway, and you really weren't happy. 2) This a joke and I missed the punchline.

Nope, I liked Netflix, it was great for someone who lives in the sticks and has slow-as-a-sloth DSL after 4pm and unpredictably so on weekends as well.

DVDs by mail were a good option for me. But they were not my only option. I saw that name switch as a really, really tacky choice, and I felt it may have provided a glimpse into the general level of thinking that has supported some of Netflix' other recent decisions.

Of course we don't know the other names that may have been considered. But if "Qwikster" was the best of a bad lot, who was providing the choices? Is this an asset they hope to get some money for some day? Qwikster? Really?

When I first read about that name choice, my mind flipped back to the afternoon I was unpacking groceries and couldn't figure out what "Quickie" on my receipt stood for. After I had accounted for everything else on my original shopping list, the only item left on it was a dish scrubbing brush. Yeah, Quickie. A dish brush. Who knew. Who WOULD know? In the meantime, while going through the list and comparing it to my receipt, I was making jokes on the phone with a friend, saying stuff like "yeah, a quickie, and it was only $3.99, too! No wonder I can't remember it!"

I'm another one of the people who believe that Netflix had become such a strong brand that its old and new customers could have figured out what was what if the company just went with "Netflix Disc" and "Netflix Stream".

But no, they went with the inexplicable "Qwikster" for the disc side. If they actually care to attract new disc-only customers, how does that work? Where is the tie to the great Netflix name for DVD delivery? In all the time I used their service, I had only three damaged discs delivered to me, and only one disc showed up a day late. That's a great record, and one that I associate to the name Netflix.

The whole thing calls to my mind the jokes made by some of the investment bankers asked to look at a failing bank's books during the financial crisis. The troubled bank was thinking to spin off some of its bad assets and called that entity SpinCo in its preliminary paperwork. Apparently it didn't take the examining banks' employees long to start calling the thing Sh&tCo as they waded through the books.

So now one might wonder if Netflix is subconsciously tagging its own bad-acting asset, the DVD-side operations, with a derogatory moniker before someone else can get around to it. Gee, didn't Hastings ever watch The Godfather? "Never tell anyone outside the family what you're thinking."

 

[Nostromo]

As ridiculous as the name 'iPad' initially sounded to some when it was officially announced by Apple (OMG it sounds like a feminine hygiene product!!), it eventually became a name that people say and don't think twice about.

I think Qwikster will be the same way.

The name Netflix has become one of the key brands of the internet age.

It's very strong with its all red design, and it's a lot easier to say than Qwikster.

The hygiene product allusion during the iPad introduction was a bit far fetched, and iPad rolls quite well off the tongue.

Which you can't say is the case with Qwk... Qwks... Qrkss... ah, forget about it

Still time to change the mind and go with Netflix Disc and Netflix Stream.

 

[LizKat]

I bumped into this piece a little while ago (link appended): "Qwikster: Not to be Confused With Quixtar, QuickStar, Kwikster, Quickster, Kwik Star, Quik-Star, or Kickstar."

http://technologizer.com/2011/09/19...er-quickster-kwik-star-quik-star-or-kickstar/

What a hoot! There are at least these seven or so companies whose names sound exactly or nearly like "Qwikster" and of course none of them has anything to do with the DVD rental business. The author of the article, Harry McCracken, suggests that Netflix is fully aware of this, and adds:

"I even wonder if they intentionally chose a name that’s not all that great because they’re not all that excited about the business they’re saddling it with. (If they’d called themselves Qwikster when they founded the company back in 1997, it might have meaningfully hurt their chances at success.)"

 

[Nostromo]

I bumped into this piece a little while ago (link appended): "Qwikster: Not to be Confused With Quixtar, QuickStar, Kwikster, Quickster, Kwik Star, Quik-Star, or Kickstar."

http://technologizer.com/2011/09/19...er-quickster-kwik-star-quik-star-or-kickstar/

What a hoot! There are at least these seven or so companies whose names sound exactly or nearly like "Qwikster" and of course none of them has anything to do with the DVD rental business. The author of the article, Harry McCracken, suggests that Netflix is fully aware of this, and adds:

"I even wonder if they intentionally chose a name that’s not all that great because they’re not all that excited about the business they’re saddling it with. (If they’d called themselves Qwikster when they founded the company back in 1997, it might have meaningfully hurt their chances at success.)"

So far I'm still subscribed to Netflix, not to Quiksfrthrskr.

I hope the Netflix brass thinks this over.

PS: Or there will be commercials for sore throat medicine, curing people who lost their voice after torturing their larynx by saying ten times: Quikws... Quiksfs... Quikskkrks... whatever... I mean you know which unpronouncable company I mean.

PS2: New tongue twister competition: who can say Qwikster more often before passing out because of oxygen deprivation.


Bottom line: I love the Netflix disc service and hope they won't mess it up. Streaming won't be ready for prime time for years.

 

[LizKat]

I'm proud of us for speaking up. I'm sure the vociferous reactions to Qwikster as a name had something to do with Hastings' latest reversal, never mind how absurd was the prospect of using two websites if one intended to keep getting DVDs and also streaming rentals.

Reuters, on October 10th: Netflix drops unpopular Qwikster DVD Plan
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/10/netflix-dvd-idUKN1E79909D20111010?type=companyNews

His pulling back on the whole splitoff and rename gig doesn't change my wonderment over his decision making process. Best case he needs a whole new set of advisors, at least some of whom should be ordinary customers for God's sake. Maybe he should retire, he brought a great thing to market but he seems lost on how to manage his brand into a bright future while keeping customers on board who are not wired up for streaming yet.

Meanwhile I'm ready to become a subscriber to the DVDs by mail piece of the biz again, as long as it's Netflix and not brixter or whatever.

 

[h1r0ll3r]

Canceled Netflix. Signed up for, oddly enough, Blockbuster. I lose streaming from Netflix (I have Amazon Prime to fill that gap) but add the ability to rent video games too. We'll see how this plan works out.