Netflix Splits In Two and Adds Game Rentals, Gamefly In Trouble?
Late last night, on Netflix.com, Reed
Hastings, co-founder and CEO of Netflix, apologized for the outrage caused when Netflix increased prices by
66 percent. I personally didn't have a problem with Netflix increasing their
prices. As someone who has enjoyed watching Movies and TV shows from my Xbox
360 and PS3 console, I knew a price-hike was expected and thought it was reasonable. "Netflix is evolving rapidly,
however, I need to be extra-communicative. This is the key thing I got wrong. In
hindsight, I slid into arrogance based upon past success. We have done very
well for a long time by steadily improving our service, without doing much CEO
communication. Inside Netflix I say, “Actions speak louder than words,” and we
should just keep improving our service."
Two major announcements soon followed: in a few weeks, Netflix's DVD mail services will be called “Qwikster” while the streaming
service stays “Netflix." “Qwikster” will allow users to add a video games service that lets them rent Xbox
360, PS3 and Wii games."Similar to our upgrade option for Blu-ray, for those who want to rent Wii, PS3
and Xbox 360 games. Members have been asking for video games for many years,
and now that DVD by mail has its own team, we are finally getting it done." “Qwikster” is the only major competitor for Gamefly and with the popularity of Netflix, Gamefly could face serious competition.
While this could result in improvements for both services, it does turn Qwikster and Netflix into two different services that you'll have to subscribe to (the total costs of both will remain the same as they are now). So do you like the idea of Netflix splitting up
into two? Or are you still pissed off about the recent price hike? Voice your opinion in the comments below.