NetFlix Feedback (1 Viewer)

[Chris Huber]

Guys I've been checking into these netflix throttling... I've been signed up for 3 months now and it may be slowing down.

Now, I noticed the e-mail speed surveys that came in e-mail from them asking when you got a certain title? there was 3 options for days... I picked the fast option because thats what I was getting. I have gotten this survey 3 times now. After takeing them, it seems like they have slowed me down some.

Anybody else have this issue? Also, I wonder if I responded the latest day in the e-mail, if they'd keep me off the throttle list...

 

[Chris Huber]

Are there any other services to sign up with? How is BB online?

 

[BryanV]

That is a very, very, interesting idea about the survey. I will try that too. Somtimes I have to cancel my membership for a few days if I am running short between payday. Last time I canceled I selected slow turn around as my reason for cancel. Ever since I restarted the throttle BS has stoped.

As far as other services. I get identical plans from Netflix and BB. That way if one does not have a movie in stock I can get it from the other. Also, since new releases are usally on the long wait list for both providers, I can use the two free in store rentals to get high demand titles right away.

BB is also now giving away free previously viewed movies that you can pick up from your local stores stock.

IMO, Netflix should strike up a deal with Hollywood Video, then they could offer the instore coupons and other premiums that only BB can offer at this stage.

P.S. Blockbuster takes way longer to get obscure titles and the wait times are just as bad if not worse than Netflix.

-bryanv

 

[Brian.P]

i never really thought about wait times...I was thinking of getting netflix. How fast do the waiting lists fill for new movies? Is there a priority list of some sorts to determine who gets first dibs or is it first come first serve?

 

[Scott-S]

I have been having a lot of "issues" with netflix lately. In fact, they are close to loosing my business.

First off, they always seem to act really slow in sending out the next disc, even if it is comming from my local facility. They used to receive a disc in the morning, and send the next one the same day. Lately they seem to first put up they are "shipping today" then it suddenl;y changes to "shipping tomorrow". They are doing this to reduce the number of discs I can watch in a week.

The worst issue I have is the disc quality. The discs are scratched up so bad, I have a hard time playing the more compressed ones (TV shows on DVD etc.) I am attempting to watch the Buffy series which has 4 episodes per disc. Every disc so far has had some skipping/freezing etc. Some are really bad and the last one I got wouldnt even play 3 out of 4 episodes. It just froze up my player. I had to wait 4 days after reporting the disc "unplayable" for the replacement to arrive and it also skipped a lot but at least let me skip past the bad chapters.

Netflix needs to throw out the discs after a certain number of rentals. I guess everyone but me uses these as doorstops or somethng judging by how scratched up these discs are.

I would change to BB but I like netflix's TV on DVD selection and advertised shipping speed.

Well, I guess I am done venting........

 

[EricSchulz]

In five years of mostly continuous service I have received one broken disc, which they replaced immediately. I have had maybe two that were unplayable due to scratches. "Throwing them away" after a certain number of rentals is plain ridiculous. Unfortunately, others may not use the same care that you do...but that would be true no matter where you rent the disc from.

 

[Scott-S]

For the record, Netflix admits to throttling. Here is a email reply received from netflix after a complaint:



Wow. What a typical "cop out" email.

 

[Chris Huber]

Now, say you cancel your account. Can you sign up with a different e-mail address, but same physical address and start over again? Then the account would be fast again.

Now, when they send you the servey e-mails that ask you when you recieved movies, you select the lastest date, even if you recieved the movies next day.

Think it'll work?

 

[Qui-Gon John]

Anyone else get an email about the settlement. I left Netflix a couple years ago, service seemed bad, too long to get movies, etc. Now it looks like I'll get a free month.

 

[Linda Thompson]

http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/nothing/netflix.asp

 

[danak]

John,
I got the settlement email. I'm curently a member, so I went ahead and put my name on the list for a month of an extra rental. It sounds like it won't happen right away; the settlement blurb made it sound like some legal stuff or whatever has to get taken care of first, so if you sign up, it won't probably take effect for a few months (just a guess).

Dana in MD

 

[Michael Caicedo]

Whew! My heart sank when I saw that snopes link. I thought for a second I had been duped. I signed up for the extra rental.

 

[MikeGale]

I've had some slow turnaround problems with NetFlix, but it's nothing compared to Blockbuster. I subscribed to both because each had movies the other didn't have (e.g. NetFlix doesn't carry "Hell Is For Heroes" starring Steve McQueen while Blockbuster's selection of the Ealing studio stuff is pathetic). In our family, we usually watch the disks immediately and send them back a.s.a.p. I live in L.A., and both NetFlix and Blockbuster returns go to the exact same post office in Santa Ana. When I send back disks at the same time, Blockbuster always receives them a day later than NetFlix. This ALWAYS happens, and since they go to the same post office, it means Blockbuster is simply taking their time processing. Blockbuster has been losing money ever since they started their "no late fees" policy in their stores, so they may be trying to make up some of their losses by slowing down the online rentals. Regardless, I am able to rent at least 50% more movies from NetFlix than from Blockbuster because of turnaround. For this reason I cancelled my Blockbuster subscription two weeks ago.

If you're trying to decide which service to use, I'd vote for NetFlix -- they have a bigger inventory and more shipping centers, which means there will probably be one closer to you than Blockbuster. (I spent the summer in Santa Barbara, and NetFlix had a facility in Oxnard, just 40 miles away, while Blockbuster shipped from Las Vegas, adding an additional day to and from.) Blockbuster might be better for you if you live in a big city and are only interested in renting mainstream, current DVDs: because they have fewer overall subscribers, you usually can get a newer title quicker. However, NetFlix is better about sending your movies in the order of your queue, assuming they're available. Also, Blockbuster's website often says they have a movie, but when you put it in your queue, it says "coming soon" which means they might get it sometime in the future...but maybe not (I've had "coming soon" next to titles for 6 months, while NetFlix has them in stock). Finally, this week there have been news reports saying that Blockbuster may seek bankruptcy protection, which is probably not a harbinger of good service in the future.

 

[KyleC]

Man I thought I was the only one. I started having problems around Halloween. Usually I'd put a movie in the mail (mine is picked up at ~5pm) and the next day I'd get the e-mail that it was received. Now, it's taking almost an entire week before I get the confirmation they've gotten my movies back. This is seriously getting on my nerves. My wife and I are watching Farscape and we're into the last season midway. I want to finish the series before Thanksgiving but it's really becoming a problem with them. Anyway to directly contact them?

 

[Chris Huber]

They really don't even care if you complain anyway. I tried. They only make money on certain amount of rentals per month. If it's over that, they don't care to keep you as a customer...

 

[KyleC]

Funny, after posting that I got my netflix e-mails. They have received all 4 of my discs at once. I sent them out at various times during the last week, and they all went to the same distribution center.

 

[danak]

Blockbuster is slower for me than Netflix. Netflix seems to acknowledge receiving my discs faster (usually) and I usually get a disc the day after they mail it; with Blockbuster, it seems to usually take 2 days. I use Blockbuster to supplement Netflix, as NF doesn't have a few titles or the special editions of some titles.

Dana in MD

 

[Kain_C]

Thank god it isn't just me. I was wondering the same thing about that survey and came here to post about it.

Within the last two weeks, I have recieved two disks that were cracked. The first one was brittle and cracked when I was about to place it in my player. The second one, recieved today, already was cracked completely through.

And the service has slowed completely. It is also taking nearly a week for Netflix to confirm my returns. Then it's another few days before they ship out my next ones! I am pretty ticked off as the service was great at one time. Now, it isn't.

 

[Kain_C]

Jesus! Yet another cracked disc! I thought they inspected these before they're sent out again?

 

[EricSchulz]

Kain:

Are you sure Netflix is the problem and not the handling by the Post Office? In 5+ years of service with them I have only had one lost disc, one that turned up after about two weeks and one cracked disc. That's pretty darn impressive to me!