As a three-time member of Netflix it is obvious it is the absolute best way to rent movies and TV shows. I mean, you always have something to watch and it has become the reason my Cinematic Revival features exist.
As most Netflix users know there is actually another way Netflix allows you to watch some movies and that is by streaming them directly online, and might I say in very good quality. According to Business Week Netflix may be looking to do more than just stream them to your computer as word of a new set-top box made by LG is set to pipe entertainment over a high-speed Internet connection directly to your television. Oh, and at no additional charge beyond the purchase of the hardware.
Of course something similar to this is already being done by Apple with Apple TV and something called Vudu, which I had never heard of. The price of the hardware for Netflix’s venture is unknown but Business Week points out that the Apple and Vudu boxes cost anywhere from $299-$399 leading us to believe that the Netflix box will most likely be around the same price.
I have actually used Netflix’s streaming service only once and even then I didn’t even watch the entire movie simply because I didn’t want to sit at my computer and watch. I also might use it more often if there were better choices, but currently, taking my 39 item queue into account, there is only one movie that is available to watch online rather than wait for the DVD. So, to say it is still in its infancy despite the fact that Netflix has spent over $40 million building the service is saying a lot and begs the question; Is it worth it?
Currently it depends on your viewing habits and whether you are more interested in watching TV or movies. If TV is your choice the Netflix streaming service is killer as it offers up options such as “Heroes” Seasons 1 and 2, “The Office” and “30 Rock”. As far as movies are concerned Pan’s Labyrinth is the most enticing to me, but now that I see Close Encounters of the Third Kind is in there I may have to watch that for the first time pretty soon.
Netflix’s primary competition will be Apple as it has recently acquired a rental deal with the likes of Twentieth Century Fox and Walt Disney Co., which will kick off their rental service. Personally I don’t think either will be too successful until there is one clearcut option to get any movie you want from any studio. Obviously the largest reason high definition videos (Blu-ray and HD DVD) hasn’t taken off as people thought is due to the fact that the studio support is split, and of course it costs a shit load to buy the discs. Hopefully Netflix gets it figured out because I would love to give it a shot.
