Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

You're right. I shouldn't have limited it to the big movies. I'm very anxious to see The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. I'm almost sure it will never come to the local theaters. It opens on one screen in Nashville (about an hour from here) in a couple of weeks, and I don't expect it to play for a long time. I read that the U.S. Blu-ray release is scheduled for July. If nothing prevents me from going, I will make the hour drive to see it at the theater instead of waiting. Let's just say that I couldn't see it in Nashville though. I don't mind if I can't see Leap Year or It's Complicated on street date, but I would be pretty upset about waiting an extra four weeks for The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

I believe Redbox did this before when one studio (Universal?) didn't sell them discs anymore. They simply bought titles elsewhere and offered them in the machine until they came to an agreement.

Netflix Watch Instantly
 

Really? That's pretty exciting. Is there a list somewhere? (Perhaps one of those Netflix user created lists?)

I tried to search for a handful of Warner Archive titles and didn't get a single hit. :(

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Not sure about that, but Netflix did buy TWC releases that were exclusive to Blockbuster.

Re: Netflix Watch Instantly
 

I stand corrected as of right now. I was going off of finding It Happened One Night, which apparently is not part of the Warner Archive Collection. The reason I thought it was is that I subscribed to the Warner Archive Podcast, and it featured a radio presentation of that movie. I erroneously thought that the reason it was promoted in the podcast was that the film was part of the WAC.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

You know people that have to wait for giant ants to let them have something?

Also, these deals are going to end up speeding up the process for Blockbuster to file for bankruptcy. They aren't going to make more money back just by having these rentals than they spent on the deal. I'll also throw in a note that just because let's say the future has Blockbuster filing for bankruptcy, doesn't mean the company would go away. It's just restructuring debt. They'll be less stores and more crazy plans of the week that they'll throw money away on.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Google "First Sale Doctrine". No one can stop Netflix/BB/Redbox from renting a dvd. They can however put market pressures onto companies to force them to comply with their terms. For example, Redbox was buying retail until recently. The studios convinced their retailers to limit the number of copies per person and in the process of doing so, essentially made the economics impossible.

These deals are being made for two reasons. First the studios are cutting the cost of their product. While Netflix may be paying the same amount of money as they were, they may be receiving 10-15% more discs for the money. They are also receiving streaming licenses which unlike physical media, are completely controlled by the studios. (This is why the entertainment industry as a whole is so gung ho about streaming/on demand.)

My problem with this whole thing is that most of the "take" from the studios revolves around streaming licenses that generate no additional revenue. Meanwhile they are "giving" the studios delays on physical media...a fair number of which carry a surcharge. Reed needs to pull his head out of his ass and move the surcharge from the Blu-Ray people towards those that stream. I am hoping the Redbox streaming plan puts pressure on NF to do so.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

This may sound like a crazy idea but perhaps the studios are cutting the sweetheart deals with BB because they know they'll end up owning the company when it exits the courts. That's the only way I see BB surviving as anything close to the way they are now.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

I can't cite anything off hand, but I do recall Netflix's official language re: streaming fees being something along the lines of, "Included with your membership for now" or "No immediate plans to impose streaming fees." I always read between the lines that they were just waiting until they were satisfied that enough subscribers had become accustomed to streaming before they began implementing a fee structure for it. I suspect it'll go something like: "Due to the overwhelming volume of streams, we're asking subscribers to accept a slight increase in fees to help Netflix continue to provide the broadband infrastructure needed to continue delivering...blah, blah, blah."

Like when 29 MLB clubs wound up running the Expos for a few years? I dunno about this. It seems to me that there might be a legal problem, if someone were able to establish what went down with studio-owned theaters as a legal precedent against studios owning a rental business. In any event, given how underwhelming studio online stores have been, I can't imagine a studio-run Blockbuster being particularly advantageous for anyone to frequent. (With the possible exception of Disney, who has really been impressive in the last couple of years in regards to being consumer-friendly.)

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

No, that doesn't make any sense. Netflix would prefer people stream versus renting physical media. They don't have to hire as many people to process the discs, don't have to replace broken/damaged discs, don't have to maintain facilities for processing them, etc. Again, their purpose is to become the premiere streaming video provider for the US. Charging for streaming now would completely counter that strategy. By offering streaming free of charge, Netflix gets users hooked. Once they're hooked in sufficiently large quantities, that's when they start charging.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Okay, now that's funny.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Regarding 'Cabin Fever 2', has anyone actually received this from Netflix, either DVD or blu ray?

I've had it in my queue since first heard about it in November and as always a coupe of weeks before release date it jumped from 'Upcoming' to my actual queue, but has now dropped back down to 'Upcoming' with no release date now.

Did I miss something? I could have sworn at least WalMart had it for sale when it came out in February.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

And I've had 'Castle' season 1 in the forever and the first disc just jumped from 'long wait' to 'very long wait' - strange!

You are correct. I wasn't aware that the courts have ruled that the law that protects records and software from rentals doesn't apply to DVDs.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Netflix is still around? I gave up on them a few years ago. If consumers would just be patient a little more, this wouldn't matter and studios wouldn't be pulling this.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

You wouldn't mind explaining this, would you?

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

This does suck, but I'm trying to put a positive spin on it. If I really want something, I get it day-and-date, and just use Netflix to prevent questionable blind buys. If I have to wait a month now, maybe the price will go down on those blind buys a little... hasn't happened yet for Blind Side or Sherlock Holmes though.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Sure, I got a few minutes to kill.

Movie studios thrive on multiple editions and impulsive buying. If consumers would simply not flock to the rental stores the second a new movie was released, movie studios would more than likely refrain from taking advantage of this impulsive behavior.

Ooops, gotta go. My movie just finished downloading.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Let me see if I follow you here. Studio releases Title for sale, makes money when Purchasing Fan buys Title and when Renter Fan rents Title. Studio then re-releases Title, hoping that Purchasing Fan will buy again, and that Renter Fan will rent again. What you're suggesting is that if Renter Fan doesn't rent, Studio will quit re-releasing Title?

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Two decades ago, Blockbuster cut a deal with Hollywood to make certain that movies would only be available in rental format for weeks, sometimes months, before the general public could buy one for themselves. Today, Blockbuster's replacement company is doing the exact opposite.

How the world turns!

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

I'm not suggesting that. In any case, it won't affect me at all. Because I simply don't care if a movie is released IMMEDIATELY for my consumption. I wait for the title to be discounted. If that's a month from now, ok. If it's 6 months from now, that's cool. I can wait.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Okay. So you're saying that Patient Buyer doesn't care about retail or rental release dates. I'm on board with that, but I still don't get where re-releases fit into your scheme.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

This would never fly because of the Paramount Decision some years ago when most major studios owned their own theaters.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Note to self: Include links to Wiki pages if you want the other posters to pay attention.

Re: Netflix - Fox and Universal join WB to delay rentals 28 days
 

Meh, i haven't gotten one movie from netflix and I have had the service for over a year now. I use it to stream only so this is a great deal for me