djfilms

Im sure that you are all aware by now that Walmart has gotten into the rent-by-mail game. A couple of my friends have commented that Nextflix doesnt have a chance against the corporate giant, Walmart. I, on the other hand, don't think that Walmart stands a chance against Netflix for the following reasons:

First of all, I think that about 95% of everyone that rents enough movies to benefit from signing up on a service like netflix, has already signed up with Netflix. Those people arent going to switch to Wal-mart just because their rates are $1 cheaper.

It will take Walmart a while before they will have the capability of getting a dvd to a customer within a couple days, like Netflix can do. and also, I doubt that Walmart will ever have the selection that Netflix does. I havent heard anything about Walmart censoring their DVDs, but I would be willing to bet that its only a matter of time before they do, just as they censor the CDs that they sell.

And most importantly, I think that Walmart cannot compete with Netflix because Walmart sucks! and they are evil. and I dont think that the people that use Netflix are the same people that shop at Walmart.

Im interested to know what everyone else thinks about this.
post away...

Dammit

I love netflix. The turn around time has been surprisingly fast. If I send a disk back on Tuesday, they recieve it the very next day and ship me a new one. I recieve them typically one day ahead of their estimated delivery date.

I saw a site recently for a similar service. I don't remember the name or URL but they did something I think netflix should do. They offer adult dvd's and game dvd's (PS2 and Xbox... not sure about gamecube). Renting games this way with no late fees would be nice.

Roto

I agree Walmart doesn't stand a chance unless they want to lower their rate to $10-$15 a month. They only undercut Netflix by $1 and from what I've heard they are pretty slow to deliver.

Netflix has been great and I have no interest in trying another service at this point.

adamblast

I certainly agree that they're not likely to pull many customers away from Netflix... They've basically got to open new markets... I don't know if that's still possible for rental-by-mail or not...

tacomantt

As of June 10, Walmart is $15.54 / month. Linky.

bis22

How's Netflix's selection compared to Filmcaddy? I would search it myself but they don't seem to allow that at Netflix for non-members.

DWilson

Filmcaddy doesn't quite match up to Netflix on selection. They don't do multi-disc Television series as a rule, and they don't do multi-disc sets (for example, you can rent "Catch Me If You Can", but not the second disc with the "Making of" features). They don't have the breadth of Netflix's supply, though they have an odd assortment of titles that Netflix doesn't, -I could get the "Millenium Edition" of "I Spit On Your Grave " (with the Joe Bob commentary), or "Master Gunfighter" or "Blue Steel",- none of which Netflix carries. You also have a better shot at getting those "Long Wait" items like "Jackass" Vols. 2-3. Turnaround is about twice that of Netflix (about 4 days in St. Louis). Sort of hit and miss, but not a bad second choice.

djfilms

tacomantt - The $15.54 price is only for two rentals.
the cost for 3 rentals is only about $1 less than Netflix ($18.86)

RussG

I try not to give Wal-Mart any more of my money if I can help it. Netflix has been great to me for nearly two years and have no intention of leaving.

DRG

I was browsing the WalMart rental list and was surprised to see they actually offered some unrated discs, like Toxic Avenger Director's Cut. Has anyone tried their free trial month offer? I'll probably sign up for Netflix for the long run, but a free month of the WalMart service might not be too bad.

Searching the Wal Mart site is weird... a serach for Halloween gave me part 4, 6, 7 and 8 under 'Horror', part 4 under 'DVD Library', and part 2 under 'Sequel Mania'. They need to do some fine tuning to this system if they are even thinking of competing with Netflix.

Tarantino

Netflix is the shiznit, and I'll never change to that demon that's called WalMart.

Plus working at Best Buy, I get a discount at Netflix, bringing my monthly total to $15.

Love it.

funkyryno

There's no way I'd leave Netlix right now. Turnaround time between movies is only two days for me. I've been a member for about three years now and don't plan to leave any time soon. I hope WallyMart fails miserably.

dirj1

I checked out the Wal-Mart DVD site when it was first announced, and it immediately failed the "Y Tu Mama Tambien" test. In other words, the search results for this movie came up with only the R-rated version (the original theatrical version was unrated).

This is one of the main reasons I stopped renting from Blockbuster and Hollywood Video and joined Netflix (and why Wal-Mart will never get my business here either). I don't want to have to scrutinize every DVD I rent to make sure it isn't a censored version.

Tazwolff

I've been with Net Flix for a little over a year, and love it for the price, selection, and speed.

I refuse to shop at any Wal-Mart anymore. They stock mostly fullscreen selections, refuse to carry, or banned certain video games and movies and recently have banned Maxim and Stuff from their stores.

nahmad

does anybody know netflix policy on lost in the mail discs, and how often discs get lost in the mail? I would think with movies being sent and received in the mail 20 times a month, inevitably one or two would get lost in the mail. Do they just charge you a flat fee, give you the benefit of doubt, or even better, do they have some way to track shipments. This is pretty much the only thing preventing me from getting a netflix subscription

Tazwolff

When a DVD doesn't show after a certain amount of time, you can report it and they will send another one to you. They do keep track of how often you report, I don't know what happens after a set limit. The only time I had a DVD not show, it was ripped from the mailer and stolen before the USPS recieved it from them, or while it was in USPS hands. The USPS stamped it with a stamp that read to the effect that it had been tampered with before delivery to me. I spoke with NetFlix and sent in the mailer back to them for their records, and they did not hold this against me or put it on my record.

Brian_92gsr

Either way, it is the first real competition for Netflix, which can only mean better service and prices. I've been using Netflix since the end of last year, and have been happy enough with it not to cancel. However, I think it could be improved still. I'm lucky to get 5 sets per month. It's usually 2 days there and 2 days back, sometimes 3. And new dvds don't always go out the same day as they get the old one.

I have had several trial accounts with Film Caddy and Walmart. Film Caddy can't compare at all, the selection sucks, they don't even say whats in stock. Walmart is decent, not quite the stock Netflix had, but close. They did SEEM to have a feature where as soon as a sent back disc has been scanned in at the post office, they would send a new one out. During my month trial it only happened on one batch.

docF94

It seems pointless to chime in again with the same comments as everyone else, but I love Netflix, and hate Walmart. Netflix has top-notch service. On the other hand, browsing through walmart's recommended titles today, I saw one item in their top 3 comedies with five stars. Care to guess?

Jeff Foxworthy: Totally committed.

If that doesn't say enough, you might think about reading this excellent, brief article from the San Francisco Chronicle. It's not a comprehensive list of reasons to hate the place, but it's a good starting point.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...otes061803.DTL

While I certainly agree that there's room for improvement in Netflix, what they offer is far and away better than anything else I've looked at. I've had problems with my Netflix account - DVDs that wouldn't play, DVDs lost in the mail, DVDs I thought were lost in the mail, but were actually lost in my place. In every case, Netflix was easy, forgiving, and totally committed to insuring first that my needs as a customer were taken care of, and secondly their needs as a business - I was never charged, and had replacement discs within 3 days. Anyone who loves movies and isn't made of money would be foolish not to sign up with them, I think. WalMart's rental service will be phased out as soon as they fail to take Netflix over. (And to hell with them.)

I love Netflix because of what it is and does, but I adore them for fighting the two largest economic terrorists in retail today - Blockbuster and Walmart. Others may disagree, but even a WalMart stockholder must acknowledge their rental plan is shaky to start, 1000 miles behind the leaders, and less committed to their customers. They are pale imitations of a great, innovative business.

Ariósibá.

Sonicflood

Yeah... for 2 DVD's at a time, not 3! It's still $18.86/mo. for 3 at a time.

Sonicflood

Roberteb

I refuse to shop at wal mart because most of their goods they sell is made overseas. The trade deficit is now a whopping 435 BILIION!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2785857.stm

DodgingCars

Does Netflix offer a cheaper (2 DVDs at a time) membership too? I thought about signing up with Netflix, but thought that I could easily deal with a cheaper 2 disc at a time membership if they offered it.

If not, Walmart might be worth it. I don't really care to see unrated versions of films, so that doesn't bother me.

Tarantino

They have an economy package at $13 something, but it's different...like 4 movies total a month or something. Garbage, basically.

bdshort

DodgingCars: I'm paying $13 at Netflix for 2 rentals a month, but I dont know if they offer it any more or not. I switched to that (from 4 titles a month) many months ago.

Brian

DodgingCars

Is it 2 rentals a month or 2 rentals at a time? Two rentals a month would mean they were $6.50/rental...

mikewendt

Isn't Walmart the same people that don't sell sertain films and don't do any uncut versions?

No thanks I'll stick with Netflix...