Is Netflix Backpedaling on Game Rentals?
Is Netflix Backpedaling on Game Rentals?
Posted 10/26/2011 at 9:08am
| by Paul Lilly
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In what was largely overshadowed by the intense backlash over Netflix's ill-fated decision to spin off its DVD-by-mail rental business into Qwikster is that you'd be able to rent videogames in addition to DVDs and Blu-ray movies. It was to be an upgrade option similar to the one for Blu-ray, except you'd be able to rent Wii, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 games. Did Netflix nix those plans when it axed Qwikster?
"Members have been asking for videogames for many years, and now that DVD-by-mail has its own team, we are finally getting it done," Netflix CEO Reed Hastings stated in a blog post announcing the Qwikster spin-off.
Now that Netflix reversed course, it appears game rentals may no longer be in the cards, or at least not anytime soon. News and rumor site Fudzilla reports it has "learned that game rentals (for the time being) have been shelved, which is good news for competitor GameFly, who was not looking forward to Netflix stepping into their videogame-by-mail business."
Nixing game rentals might be viewed as a necessary cut now that Netflix's physical media business won't be getting a dedicated team separate from the streaming side of things, but on the flip side, game rentals could be just the thing to stop the bleeding and keep even more subscribers from jumping ship, even the angry ones. In a letter to shareholders announcing third quarter earnings, Netflix was very open about the last few months being "difficult" all around.
We are currently seeking comment from Netflix.
Update 10/26/11
Steve Swasey, Vice President of Corporate Communications for Netflix, responded to our request for comment and simply said, "We're still considering games," and left it at that.
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lordmidnight
October 26, 2011 at 3:45pm
It wouldn't matter to me one way or the other, unless they intend to do the impossible and rent PC games.
praack
October 26, 2011 at 1:23pm
games have high overhead and low margins, with the new wave of blocking elements if games are resold- the secondary value plummets after the game rental is no longer on the hot list.
netflix is contintuing to stumble, still not reaching out to the customer base to understand what it wants. I should not have to order on dvd a movie that was a hit 3 years ago because netflix still cannot stream it.
that is the problem - the streaming side has no depth- the dvd side has depth but now is saddled with high cost and a disinterested management
Iowa_State_Cyclone
October 26, 2011 at 12:14pm
So, why does not splitting the website up mean there can't be a dedicated team to disc-based design? Couldn't you still have dedicated teams that work within a single consolidated site? This doesn't seem that much of a "novel-concept" to me (we actually do it at my work). And I think we can all agree, Netflix website sucks (especially their watch instantly interface on PCs... and the xbox 360 interface is just as bad if not worse).
Nyarlathotep
October 26, 2011 at 11:36am
Game rentals and no 28 day waiting period are why my wife and I switched to Blockbuster's mail subscription plan. I think it's been about a year for us and the service has been just as good as Netflix's plus we can exchange the mailed discs at any Blockbuster store for a movie off the shelf. I am not a schill for Blockbuster and have had bad experiences with them in the past but so far the mail order service has been good. We'll see how long they stay in business...
acidic
October 27, 2011 at 4:51am
the no 28 day on dvds is nice but i cant say the same for their games. as of now their selection of games is lacking but i still have a lot in my list although they are older titles that i havent played yet. ill eventually get them some day. they have a MASSIVE delay on getting new games. take batman arkham city for example, its been out for a week or so now and it isnt available on blockbuster until 1/31/2012
Nyarlathotep
November 08, 2011 at 4:12pm
I've noticed the lag on games too. We have a Wii in the house but I mostly game on the PC. If game rentals are a priority I do not recommend the BB subscription but the games are a nice bonus for someone who primarily rents movies.
jedisamurai
October 26, 2011 at 10:55am
Game rentals definitely couldn't hurt. Personally I thought that making it two seperate services was a great idea. But then again, I didn't mind the price increases and plan splits either.
Holly Golightly
October 26, 2011 at 9:28am
They should have been renting games out long ago. Maybe they would have not gotten into this financial mess in the first place.
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