8 ms·

Their DVD service may still exist, but my DVD player does not.

by caleblloyd 10y ago

dragonwriter 10y ago
DVD players are cheap, so that's an easily solved problem.
- gregmac 10y ago
  My willingness to deal with physical media, let alone the postal service (any more then I am forced to, anyway) disappeared a few years ago. How is Netflix able to get rights to send physical media, but not stream? It seems to me that literally the only real difference is physical media means there is a limit on number of concurrent viewers.
  - dragonwriter 10y ago
    Physical media is subject to the Doctrine of First Sale, which means Netflix doesn't have to get a special license for DVD rentals. From a copyright perspective, that's a fundamental difference from streaming.
  - turc1656 10y ago
    I understand the desire for instant gratification, not to mention the desire to be free of the money pit called the USPS. That being said, physical media has far superior audio and video quality. A Bluray disc vs streaming 1080p (especially a Netflix stream) is a world of difference. Streaming media is usually bit-starved to near death. If you care about quality (and you very well may not), it's the only way to fly. If you don't mind the subpar video and audio quality, then I can understand why people use the streaming service. It's just not for me, though. I have a 49" 4k TV and a Bluray player that upscales for a reason. I don't want that swill they serve up over ethernet, lol.
    - rjbwork 10y ago
      By this logic, torrents are then the best of both worlds. :/ An unfortunate situation.
    - scurvy 10y ago
      Netflix has 4K native content at a pretty decent bitrate.
oldmanjay 10y ago
That's not really a flaw of netflix, is it? If you believe it is, I'd love to understand your reasoning.
- wtetzner 10y ago
  I'm not the OP, but I'll give it a shot :) The value Netflix provides is primarily convenience. There are other ways to watch movies and TV shows, the reason to use Netflix is that it's more convenient than the alternatives. Having to deal with physical media (and wait for them to be delivered) is less convenient than other alternatives to Netflix. Therefore, it's a flaw of Netflix.
  - pmoriarty 10y ago
    Streaming is definitely more convenient, but since Netflix's streaming selection is atrocious, it's not worth my time or money. I'd much rather put up with the minimal hassle and a bit of a wait to get a great selection of DVDs. The "hassle" amounts to me opening up an envelope, putting the DVD in to my DVD player, putting it back in to the envelope when I'm done and throwing it in to a mailbox on my way to work. Sure, it's not as easy as hitting play in a streaming app, but not really a big deal, either.
    - phamilton 10y ago
      The hassle involves the latency of wanting to watch something and it being in the envelope in your home.
      - pmoriarty 10y ago
        I'd rather wait a bit for something good than stream garbage.
    - maverick_iceman 10y ago
      I'm pretty sure hackney cab drivers argued similarly about automobiles.
omouse 10y ago
Do they do blu-ray?
- rackbreaker 10y ago
  yes
AjithAntony 10y ago
You can play DVD's in your bluray player ;)
- kbart 10y ago
  Are these still a thing? I've never seen one in use..

Their DVD service may still exist, but my DVD player does not.

dragonwriter 10y ago

DVD players are cheap, so that's an easily solved problem.

gregmac 10y ago
My willingness to deal with physical media, let alone the postal service (any more then I am forced to, anyway) disappeared a few years ago. How is Netflix able to get rights to send physical media, but not stream? It seems to me that literally the only real difference is physical media means there is a limit on number of concurrent viewers.
- dragonwriter 10y ago
  Physical media is subject to the Doctrine of First Sale, which means Netflix doesn't have to get a special license for DVD rentals. From a copyright perspective, that's a fundamental difference from streaming.
- turc1656 10y ago
  I understand the desire for instant gratification, not to mention the desire to be free of the money pit called the USPS. That being said, physical media has far superior audio and video quality. A Bluray disc vs streaming 1080p (especially a Netflix stream) is a world of difference. Streaming media is usually bit-starved to near death. If you care about quality (and you very well may not), it's the only way to fly. If you don't mind the subpar video and audio quality, then I can understand why people use the streaming service. It's just not for me, though. I have a 49" 4k TV and a Bluray player that upscales for a reason. I don't want that swill they serve up over ethernet, lol.
  - rjbwork 10y ago
    By this logic, torrents are then the best of both worlds. :/ An unfortunate situation.
  - scurvy 10y ago
    Netflix has 4K native content at a pretty decent bitrate.

oldmanjay 10y ago

That's not really a flaw of netflix, is it? If you believe it is, I'd love to understand your reasoning.

wtetzner 10y ago
I'm not the OP, but I'll give it a shot :) The value Netflix provides is primarily convenience. There are other ways to watch movies and TV shows, the reason to use Netflix is that it's more convenient than the alternatives. Having to deal with physical media (and wait for them to be delivered) is less convenient than other alternatives to Netflix. Therefore, it's a flaw of Netflix.
- pmoriarty 10y ago
  Streaming is definitely more convenient, but since Netflix's streaming selection is atrocious, it's not worth my time or money. I'd much rather put up with the minimal hassle and a bit of a wait to get a great selection of DVDs. The "hassle" amounts to me opening up an envelope, putting the DVD in to my DVD player, putting it back in to the envelope when I'm done and throwing it in to a mailbox on my way to work. Sure, it's not as easy as hitting play in a streaming app, but not really a big deal, either.
  - phamilton 10y ago
    The hassle involves the latency of wanting to watch something and it being in the envelope in your home.
    - pmoriarty 10y ago
      I'd rather wait a bit for something good than stream garbage.
  - maverick_iceman 10y ago
    I'm pretty sure hackney cab drivers argued similarly about automobiles.

omouse 10y ago

Do they do blu-ray?

rackbreaker 10y ago
yes

AjithAntony 10y ago

You can play DVD's in your bluray player ;)

kbart 10y ago
Are these still a thing? I've never seen one in use..