Beat the studios' trap with Netflix!

You know how they like to release more than one version of a film on DVD, like a special extended edition, commemorative anniversary re-releases, director's cut versions, etc? It's to trap you into buying the same movie again and again. You can save money by using Netflix for the basic movie content. If you want the special features, or packaging, or director's cut, whatever, then you buy it.

Netflix does carry a few director's cut versions, special editions, and extended editions.

Happy New Year! Spring Festival（春节）节

2006 is the Year of the Dog, which began Sunday, according to the Lunar Chinese Calendar. Since giving gifts in Red Envelopes is customary at this time, why don't you give Netflix?

I ordered a movie from the new Netflix store, and it came in a plastic envelope like this one.

Learn more about the Chinese calendar.

Netflix is perfect for you, if...

Netflix is perfect for you if:

...you do not have the same taste as everyone else
...you don't like commitment
...you hate deadlines
...you love movies
...you like getting mail, not bills
...you live in a remote area
...you love tv shows, but not commercials
...you keep odd hours
...you're on a budget
...you hate long lines
...you live alone
...you're a parent
...you're on the road a lot
...you can't remember the name of that great movie you've been meaning to see
...you live with other people
...you never have any stamps or envelopes in the house
...you have a DVD player

Netflix has Bubble

Bubble is the Steven Soderbergh movie which is breaking new ground with a simultaneous release on DVD, cable TV, and in theatres.

Amazon to offer video downloads soon?

Via Ars Technica

Variety pulls together (subscription required) reports from a variety of movie industry sources who say they have been working with Amazon.com to set up online delivery of movies for an end-of-April launch, and although Amazon spokespeople refused to comment on the story, the multiple sources lend credence to the scoop, and it all makes too much sense not to be true.

Read more

Nobody Wants Your Film

Nobody Wants Your Film, an experiment in independent filmmaking using viral marketing, is now available for download for $3.99.

AFI Top 100

I have finally seen all of the AFI top 100 movies, thanks to Netflix!

70-80% of Netflix rentals are long tail

70-80% of Netflix rentals are long tail by ZDNet's ZDNet Research -- New York Times posted an interesting fact about Netflix's long tail share -between 70 and 80% of NetFlix rentals come from the company's back catalog of 38,000 films rather than recent releases.

How to make custom lists on Netflix

Netflix creates a list of your "favorite movies" automatically using the movies you've rated 5 stars, and then occasionally features a member's favorites in some places on the Web site. If your list isn't featured this way, you can still create a custom list of favorites, according to your own criteria, but first you must review at least two movies on Netflix.

To review a movie on Netflix: go to the movie's listing and click on Member Reviews. Then click on the Write a Review button. After you've done this for two movies, you will have a link on your Netflix home page for Your Reviews and Lists. On each movie listing page, there will be a link for Add to Custom List.

If you want to edit the Nickname that appears with your review, or edit your lists, click on Your Reviews and Lists in the Guides section on the right side of the Netflix home page. There, you can change your nickname, edit or create lists, change your Bio, change your Privacy Setting, see which movies you've reviewed, etc. Then you will have a profile which looks like this: For more information, go to Netflix help with Your Reviews and Lists

Reed Hastings' politics

For those of you who do not believe Reed Hastings is a good Democrat, you should know he supports the Preschool for All Ballot initiative in California.

Read the Press release

Netflix has a snazzy new investors' Fact Sheet

Don't squint. You can download the entire Netflix investor fact sheet here.

Netflix Q4 2005 Results & Webcast Notes

Mike listened to the Netflix Q4 2005 Results & Webcast and took notes.

Netflix is up to 4.2 Million subscribers!

As predicted, Netflix is reporting that subscribers increased 60 percent year-over-year to 4.2 million.

Other highlights from Netflix's Q4 2005 Financial results:

• Net subscriber additions were a record high for both the quarter and the year.
• Churn declined to a record low of 4.0 percent.
  
• Revenue was $195 million.
• GAAP net income was $38.1 million, which includes the benefit of realized deferred tax assets of $30.2 million.
  
• Income before income taxes was $9.1 million.
  
• Non-GAAP net income was $41.4 million. Non-GAAP net income before realized deferred tax assets was $11.3 million.

Download the PDF here.

The Flight of the DVD

This brilliant, adorable diagram by Nigel Holmes which he created for Stanford Magazine (of the Stanford University Alumni Association) shows in great detail, step-by-step, exactly how Netflix works. Click on it to see a larger version. I wish I could have a poster-sized version of this.


I found the link to Stanford Magazine's otherwise unremarkable article in the Institutional Investor.

Netflix will support both HD-DVD and Blu-ray formats

Via HackingNetflix

As predicted, Netflix will support both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray. They never really had to choose which format to support, did they? They will rent whatever the studios and filmmakers make available and whatever subscribers want.

Netflix distributes The Puffy Chair

Netflix is getting deeper into the film financing and distribution business with independent filmThe Puffy Chair. Not only are they going to have the film to rent online, but they are also releasing it theatrically and in stores.

Read more about it in the Hollywood Reporter, via Hacking Netflix.

I'm in the Seventies now

I'm going through the book of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die watching all the movies chronologically, whenever possible. I have just finished with the Sixties, pretty much. I had to skip a few which aren't on DVD yet, but I'm hunting them down on VHS. I've seen 667 of the titles in the book. Nearly 350 of them came from Netflix.

Netfix typo

Typing "Netfix" instead of Netflix is a common mistake, but it can lead you to Netfix, one of those Web sites which takes advantage of people who make a mistake when typing a URL. You're looking for Netflix, and you type "Netfix" by mistake, and boom, you land on the wrong Web site. At least it's not one of those that hijacks your computer, eh? I didn't click on the site anywhere, so I can't guarantee it won't install spyware on your PC, but it is covered in ads for all sorts of DVD stuff. Mind how you type!

Also:

Netfix(TM) is a German trademark for a fabric used in protein electrophoresis.

There's a spyware-remover that claims to remove the "Netfix" cookie. Sorry, guys, but there isn't one. The funny thing is, they consistently misspell the Netflix name everywhere on their site. Like they really don't know. Would you trust them to remove spyware from your PC?

Australian Netflix clones

Via djp72.net:

Quickflix Over 15,000 titles
Homescreen Over 14,000 titles
Big Pond Over 16,000 titles
Webflicks Over 17,000 titles
DVDjam
v2direct Over 23,000 titles?!

Surprising that not as many titles have been released on DVD in Australia as in the USA. Netflix has 55,000. Maybe the missing titles are all American reality TV shows.

NETFLIX NAMES TARHEEL AS NEW COO

The new COO of Netflix is a Tarheel who used to work in Greensboro, NC, where this humble blog originates.

LOS GATOS, Calif., January 18, 2006 – Netflix, Inc. (Nasdaq: NFLX) today announced the appointment of former U.S. Postmaster General William J. Henderson as chief operations officer of the world’s largest online DVD rental service. He assumes his new role on January 23 and succeeds Tom Dillon, who is scheduled to retire in April.

In his new role at Netflix, Mr. Henderson will be responsible for managing and evolving the technology, automation and distribution operations that underpin the company’s rental business. He will report directly to Netflix Chairman and CEO Reed Hastings.

“Bill Henderson is about the only person on the planet who looks at our volume of mail as a trickle,” said Mr. Hastings. Netflix ships over one million DVDs a day from 37 distribution centers across the U.S.

“Bill is the perfect person to ensure that our operations are inextricably linked with every aspect of the business and that our service levels are a linchpin of the Netflix customer experience,” Mr. Hastings added. “We’ll look for him to extend our current competitive advantages in this area, particularly as our mail volume increases with our forecasted growth to at least 5.65 million subscribers this year and 20 million by 2010-2012.”

Of Mr. Dillon’s pending retirement, Mr. Hastings said: “I know I speak for the entire company in wishing Tom the very best as he moves into the next phase of his life. To say that he contributed mightily to our success does not do justice to the impact Tom had on us professionally and personally. We’re all indebted to him.”

For more information, visit www.netflix.com.

America in Ten Movies

Sal says:

You have to explain America to someone from not here, but you can only use ten movies to do it. Which ten do you choose?

(Now, these do not have to be history movies, they can illustrate something unique about American values or character or “the American experience”).

Here's my list, with links to their listings on Netflix:

High Noon (1952)
Gone With The Wind (1939)
Avalon (1990)
Louisiana Story (1948)
Mr Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
12 Angry Men (1957)
In the Heat of the Night (1967)
Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace and Music (1970)
Mean Streets (1973)
All the President’s Men (1976)

Via Listology

Inspired by Sal's comment on this post

Region-free DVDs open world of previously unavailable titles

Via the Chicago Tribune
By Joshua Klein
Special to the Tribune

people became aware that amazing films were being released all around the world, and they couldn't access them," says Gervasi. "They knew that they were there--or maybe they didn't--but there were so few companies importing them.

"For the collector, it's problematic to order these titles from each respective country," he notes. "The postage alone is a nightmare. We came from doing that ourselves, just trying to keep up with all of it. We found that if you bring them all into one place, people will come and buy stuff from all around the world."

Read more

Sites featured in the above article are:
DVDBeaver.com
Amazon.com
DiabolikDVD.com
HKFlix.com
Nicheflix.com

Netflix does not yet rent non-region 1 DVDs

DVDPlay(R) Announces 200% Growth in DVD Movie Rentals for 2005!

Via Businesswire

LOS GATOS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 17, 2006--DVDPlay, Inc., one of the leading North American DVD rental kiosk companies, is quickly changing the method, the place, the pace and the price consumers pay for new release DVD movies. DVDPlay has rented in excess of 4 million movies, with 2005 representing an increase of 200% over 2004. DVDPlay's 200% increase in rental growth is "notable" when compared to the overall DVD rental market, which grew a respectable 14% in 2005 according to the Digital Entertainment Group (Reuters Jan 5, 2006). DVDPlay operates automated movie rental kiosks located in major grocery chains, fast food restaurants and U.S. military bases. Generally DVDPlay new release titles rent from $1.00 to $1.49 per day depending on location.

Read more

GameZnFlix, Inc. Signs Lease for Its Own Proprietary Channel to Be Broadcasted via Satellite

That headline is exactly how the press release was written. The correct word is broadcast, not "broadcasted."

Via Marketwire

FRANKLIN, KY -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 01/17/2006 -- GameZnFlix, Inc. (OTC BB: GZFX), an online provider of DVDs and video games for rent or purchase, plans to launch its own proprietary channel on IntelSat America 5, a satellite transponder aimed toward Ethnic, Christian, Military and other communities in the United States. The new video/movie channel -- a collaboration between GameZnFlix and Hit Media, LLC, a Florida-based marketing firm with roots in the satellite and video distribution industries -- will primarily serve as a marketing tool to millions of viewers in the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean.

The satellite delivery model -- provided by Pittsburgh International Telecommunications, Inc. -- will also serve as a GameZnFlix's download station to those same customers.

CEO John Fleming, GameZnFlix, Inc., stated, "This is the first step towards our company moving into the direct download to personal entertainment systems across the United States. We have been working closely with Pittsburgh International Telecommunications, Inc. and Hit Media, LLC over the past year on this project. We are pleased to make this announcement."

Read more

Rentrak Announces 2005 Year-End Results for U.S. Home Video Rental Market

PORTLAND, Ore., Jan. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Rentrak Corporation(Nasdaq: RENT), the originator of real-time home video tracking and analysis by Home Video Essentials(TM), announced today that 2005 U.S. consumer spending on combined DVD/VHS rentals and previously-viewed titles, from both brick-and-mortar and online channels, was down slightly (-) 1.8% from 2004.

According to Rentrak's Home Video Essentials(TM), consumers spent a total of $8.8 Billion on a la carte, in-store and online subscription rentals and previously-viewed videos during the 52-week period 1/9/05 - 1/1/06, compared to the $8.9 Billion spent the year prior during weeks ending 1/4/04 - 12/26/04.

The weeks during the November and December holidays were especially strong with rentals and previously-viewed sales up 9% year-over-year.

"Taking into account the myriad of choices consumers have with competing forms of media and entertainment, the video rental market performed considerably well," said Brad Hackley, Vice President of Home Video Essentials(TM) at Rentrak. "Our research shows that the home video rental industry is a stable market and, with high definition DVD on the horizon, should remain so moving forward."

A comprehensive analysis of the 2005 home video market can be found in the upcoming annual research report published by Rentrak Corporation. To reserve a copy, email: HVEeMedia@rentrak.com. For information about additional industry research and analysis reports about the U.S. home video rental market, logon to: http://www.rentrak.com/es_homevideo.php .

Via PRNewswire

Canceling

Why is it such a big deal to remember to cancel your free trial or upgrade? Thousands of people do it all the time! Some are saying that the Netflix lawsuit settlement is a scam because it "burdens" you with having to remember to cancel after your free one-month upgrade is over or you'll get "stuck" paying the additional fees. Why is it such a burden to cancel at the end of a month? If the money matters to you so much, you'll remember. If you forget to cancel, obviously, you can afford it.

Where's the personal responsibility? Why are we so dependent on everyone else to tell us what to do, and then we cry foul when they get in our business? I think it is reasonable to expect an adult citizen to be able to do the following things: get a rebate check, file an income tax return, vote, resist spam, resist a timeshare, and cancel a free trial.

If you hate having the government and corporations in your business, telling you what to do, then you have to be strong enough to take care of yourself. Governments take over where citizens are weak. You've got the power. Don't invite fascism into your life by giving up your power.

Another use for Netflix

SFist Blotter came up with another use for Netflix: to pass the time while you're on house arrest for leaving your kids home alone while you go to Las Vegas to gamble.

New Netflix HQ Photos

Hacking NetFlix found these photos of Netflix headquarters taken apparently during an open house. I'm so jealous of those folks that got to go! No, I wasn't invited to the open house.

It's a beautiful building with many creative touches. Nice.

Golden Globe Awards are Monday

The 63rd Annual Golden Globes are this Monday, January 16, 2006 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel (Oh no, I have nothing to wear!), Beverly Hills, California. It will be broadcast Live on NBC, 8:00 eastern. I might even watch :). The list of Golden Globe nominees makes good Netflix queue fodder, and sometimes helps you to win the Oscar(r) pool at work.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE of the HFPA and the GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS

Monday is a USPS postal holiday, so what else are you going to do?

Consumer Reports evaluates movies by mail - Updated 1-14-06

Via WIStv.com Columbia, SC:
They compared the following services:
Blockbuster
DVD Avenue
GameznFlix
Intelliflix
Netflix

Consumer Reports says the movie selection at GameznFlix was lousy, and when they tried to take advantage of the free trial sign up, the DVDs never arrived.

The best deal in DVD delivery, according to Consumer Reports, is from Intelliflix. It costs $16.95 a month for three movies at a time. Intelliflix has a great selection, but the website is strictly no-frills.

I guess "best deal" to them means cheapest.

UPDATE - HackingNetflix made some phone calls and verified the story and added some details to it. The original article is in Consumer Reports Money Adviser, which is why it isn't online.

Postal worker indicted in theft of Netflix and Blockbuster Online movies

Via TheDenverChannel.com

DENVER -- A federal grand jury in Denver has returned an indictment against Karen Durante, 24, of Loveland, Colo., in connection with the thefts of DVD movies from the U.S. mail.

Durante was working as a contract mail carrier at the time of the thefts, according to the indictment.

She is charged with four counts of mail theft and a fifth count charges her with possession of 1,256 movies that had been stolen from the mail.

This is a follow-up to the post on 1/06/06 about Two postal workers suspected of stealing Netflix DVDs

Blockbuster is giving up on its stores

Via Reuters.com

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Blockbuster Inc.(BBI.N: Quote, Profile, Research) Chief Executive John Antioco on Tuesday told investors that the No. 1 U.S. rental chain would push customers toward its online rental service as it continues to close retail stores in 2006.

the HUB magazine interviews Leslie Kilgore, CMO for Netflix

the HUB magazine interviewed Leslie Kilgore, Chief Marketing Officer for Netflix, about how Netflix only wants to be loved, and it will be loved for its amazing customer service. She says there are lots of other reasons people love Netflix, but the chief reasons are ease and convenience. She also says that folks really value Netflix for their big collection of titles.

When asked about Netflix's involvement in blogging, she says they don't need to have a corporate blog, because if they do good customer service, bloggers will love Netflix and write about them for free. (Where on earth does she get these crazy ideas?!)

No matter how much I love Netflix, I must remember that they want me only for my money, and free word-of-mouth marketing.

Netflix most satisfying site for holiday shoppers

Via MarketingVOX

Consumer satisfaction with many of the top retail Web sites dropped over the holiday season, according to a study released yesterday by ForeSee Results and FGI Research.
The Top 40 Online Retail Satisfaction Index compares online shopper satisfaction -- whether a purchase was made or not -- between the holidays and the rest of the year. The index was launched in the spring and uses the methodology of the University of Michigan's American Customer Satisfaction Index to determine the scores. The Web sites highlighted in the study are the top 40 retailers in Internet Retailer Magazine's Top 400 Guide.

Survey says:

"The highest scoring retailers were Netflix, Amazon, L.L. Bean and QVC, which each scored 80 or higher. "

William Shatner to host The Golden Groundhog Awards *Updated 1-15-06

The Golden Groundhog Awards

are a new cinema tradition, established to recognize genuinely outstanding films from the previous year that lacked the distribution and marketing support needed to propel them into the public consciousness. To be eligible for a Golden Groundhog, a film must meet three criteria: the film must have been released during the previous year, grossed less than $1 million at the U.S. box office, and received rave reviews from the limited audiences who watched the film. These are classic underground hits – immensely appreciated by the small audiences who have discovered them, but virtually unknown to the broader movie-going audience.

These are the nominees. You can click on the links to save them to your Netflix queue:

Green Street Hooligans
Mirrormask
Nine Lives
Sunnyvale
Up for Grabs

*Updated with link for Sunnyvale movie on 1-15-06

Box Office Blahs: Blame It on ...

"...DVDs, video games, iPods, cellular phones, HBO, crying babies, $10 tickets, Chinese pirates, big screen plasma TVs, an aging demographic, liberal bias, video-on-demand, annoying pre-feature commercials and the Bush administration's energy policy"

Read more about it at TMCnet.

Netflix distribution center photos

Netflix distribution center
Originally uploaded by Netflix Fan.

I have collected lots of photos, from various Web sources, of the inside of Netflix distribution centers around the country. You can see the entire collection on Flickr.

FTC objects to Netflix settlement

Wow, even the Feds are getting involved in the DVD business:

Via Seattle Post-Intelligencer

The Federal Trade Commission is asking a California judge to reject a proposed class-action settlement between consumers and the Internet DVD rental service Netflix, saying the agreement "appears dangerously close to being a promotional gimmick."

Read more

Netflix settlement objection is in the mail

The Netflix Settlement Sucks author has changed tactics and decided not to opt out of the settlement but to object to it. You can read his objection online here. It's too late to sign on to the objection, because it has been completed and is being filed with the court, but I will be very interested in the outcome.

Box office to mailbox

Photo credit: (Angelina Gervasi/News-Sentinel)
The Lodi News-Sentinel got inside the USPS and photographed these Netflix envelopes going through the sorter. The accompanying article also says that Netflix returns can go through two stages: first to a "mail center" and then to a "hub."

As the movies are viewed in Lodi, they are sent back in the same envelope for free to a mail center in West Sacramento. From there, they are shipped quickly to a hub, or a warehouse where millions of titles are kept. For Netflix, the closest hub to Lodi is in Sunnyvale, Swasey said.

That means the PO Box addresses we've collected could represent mail centers and not actual distribution centers.

Netflix site down for maintenance

I received this message from Netflix.com at 1:15 PM EST. Click on the photo to see a larger version.

Netflix distribution centers

I've added a link to the list of Netflix Distribution Centers to the sidebar of my blog, right below the description of Netflix. I'm collecting mailing addresses for each location, so look at your envelopes and if your addresses are missing from my list, put them in the comments.

This is for your information only. I can't guarantee that these addresses will work, since we're using the honor system, and the USPS may not pay attention to business reply mail that's been altered.

Yield to the Zen of Netflix

DecafBad blogs:

I’ve realized an irony with our Netflix usage: When we get a DVD that we really want to see, it usually gets watched and sent back on the same day it arrives. But, when we get a DVD that maybe only I want to see, or maybe neither of us ends up in a mood to see, we end up keeping it for a few days—sometimes for a whole week. We’ve yet to “declare defeat” on many choices and just send them back unwatched.

This is weird, when I think about it: It actually costs more money to hang onto the DVD—in a rentals-per-month sense—versus sending it right back and possibly requesting it again in the future when we’re in a mood to see it. Of course, lots of back and forth with unwatched videos costs postage, but that’s not our problem.

This seems like a sort of Zen of Netflix thing I should wrap my head around. And, if Netflix really wanted to save some money and exploit this bug of mine, they should recommend things that I kinda-but-don’t-really want to see—so that I hang onto them longer and don’t squeeze so much value out of my flat monthly rate.

Altering the address on the Netflix return mailer is a big no-no

According to the United States Postal Service Domestic Mail Manual, Chapter 507 on Mailer Services, under Topic 8.0 on Business Reply Mail (BRM), sub-topic 8.4.4 says:

"The delivery address on a piece of BRM may not be altered to redirect the mailpiece to any address other than the one preprinted on the piece."


Netflix's self-mailing return envelopes are clearly labeled as "business reply mail."

TLPJ Objects to Proposed Settlement of Netflix Class Action Over Deceptive Advertising - January 5, 2005

TLPJ, which stands for Trial Lawyers for Public Justice, is objecting to the terms of the proposed settlement to the Chavis v Netflix class action.

TLPJ’s challenge on behalf of a dissatisfied class member, filed on January 5, 2006, claims that the coupons offered to customers as part of the settlement – a one-month upgraded membership for current customers or a renewed one-month membership for former customers – are just a "marketing tool" designed to increase Netflix’s revenues. Because class members face additional charges if they do not affirmatively opt-out after the "free" month, the settlement may leave customers worse off than before the lawsuit was filed.

Read more

Netflix smells 81% fresh

Netflix wins Opinmind's "Sentimeter" poll, with 53 recent blog posts saying negative things and 151 saying positive things about Netflix.

Via hackingnetflix

Two postal workers suspected of stealing Netflix DVDs

9news.com reports: "According to court records, between January and March of 2005, 503 Netflix DVD movies destined for Lyons, Colorado were reported missing or stolen. Netflix told investigators the loss represents 23.33 percent of all DVD movies mailed to that postal area. "

Watch the video

via hackingnetflix

UPDATED 1-6-06 List of Netflix distribution centers deleted from Wikipedia

The List of Netflix distribution centers has been deleted from Wikipedia.

UPDATE: I have copied the list here. If you would like to contribute the missing addresses (from your return envelopes), please put them in the comments.

UPDATE 1-6-06: As Heather Anne pointed out in the comments, this list originated on Listology, and is being maintained there by Jim, a very nice guy. However, this list includes the mailing addresses for each location.

CoolSavings claims Netflix as client

CoolSavings.com is one of those sites that gathers information from unwary visitors using "coupons and deals" as a come-on, then they install spyware on your PC and bombard you with targeted advertising, which they call "offers." They claim Netflix as one of their "clients."

Just because someone claims to do business with Netflix, doesn't mean that Netflix approves of their techniques. They could be an affiliate, like anyone else, only they could be violating Netflix's affiliate agreement, which prohibits the use of spyware. If you believe this is the case with any Netflix affiliate, you should let Netflix know, so they can fire them from the affiliate program.

Just so you know, CoolSavings has changed their name to Q Interactive, although they are still operating coolsavings.com as before, according to Crain's Chicago Business. They've also gone private, which means they do not have to disclose certain things about their business practices. Having no stockholders means less accountability.

Netflix queue fodder: 30 Great Westerns

Images Journal has come up with a survey of 30 Great Westerns. You can use this as inspiration for filling your queue, if you like Westerns. Even if you don't like Westerns, there's lots of good-looking sweaty men here:

The Covered Wagon (1923)
The Iron Horse (1924)
Tumbleweeds (1925)
Stagecoach (1939)
Ox-Bow Incident (1942)
My Darling Clementine (1946)
Pursued (1947)
Red River (1948)
The Gunfighter (1950)
High Noon (1952)
Rancho Notorious (1952)
Hondo (1953)
Shane (1953)
Johnny Guitar (1954)
Vera Cruz (1954)
The Man From Laramie (1955)
The Searchers (1956)
Forty Guns (1957)
The Tall T (1957)
Man of the West (1958)
Rio Bravo (1959)
Ride Lonesome (1959)
The Magnificent Seven (1960)
Ride the High Country (1962)
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
The Wild Bunch (1968)
High Plains Drifter (1972)
Unforgiven (1992)

I've seen 18 of them.

New Netflix Headquarters

Via Hacking NetFlix: Netflix has moved their headquarters in California from University Dr to 100 Winchester Circle, Los Gatos CA 95032.

How to bypass the computer answering the phone at Netflix

Paul English has published an IVR Cheat Sheet(tm) on the Web, and Netflix is on the list. IVRs ("interactive voice response") are the annoying computers that answer phones. To get through to a human at Netflix, the "cheat" is to dial 888-638-3549, and then 0. You may have to wait awhile.

He wants you to rate how well the Netflix "cheat" works at this link.

He has lots of other companies on the list, too.

eBay t-shirt auction busted!

This is a follow-up to this post I did last week about an eBay auction for a Netflix t-shirt:

Dear (Netflixfan),


Please be advised that the following auction:

7567761072 - NETFLIX LIMITED EDITION T-SHIRT RED XL NEW!

was ended early by eBay. The auction was ended due to the account
suspension of the seller.
All results for this auction are null and void.


Regards,
Customer Support (Trust and Safety Department)
eBay Inc

Before the auction ended, I managed to order and receive a t-shirt from this seller. The t-shirt has a beautiful Netflix logo on it, but does not have a trademark symbol on it anywhere. Nor does it indicate anywhere who the manufacturer is. The seller said it was XL, but it is labeled X, and it looks like a female X, so a bit smaller than I expected. I suspected the merchandise was not officially licensed Netflix product, but since I'm not an expert, I didn't want to libel a presumed innocent person. Now that the person has been suspended from eBay, my suspicions seem to be confirmed.

What I did in 2005

I saw 454 movies, not including short films or television shows on DVD. 344 of them came from online sources, including Blockbuster Online, Facets, Greencine, Netflix, Nicheflix, and Video Library. The other 110 I saw at the theatre, a friend's house or a film festival, or I borrowed them from a video store or library. Here's a partial breakdown:

BBV 11
BBO 101
Facets 23
Greencine 7
Hollywood Video 8
Netflix 177
Nicheflix 32
Nicheflix a la carte 15
Other 15
Public Library 2
Theatre 53
Video Library 7

The above list excludes film festivals.

Pinoy movies on Netflix

DVD.pinoy.FLIX is An Unofficial List Of Filipino DVD Titles on Netflix. A Filipino Netflix fan has done some hard work and made a list of all the Filipino titles he could find on Netflix. If you know of any he's missed, help him out.

What did Netflix do in 2005?

• Netflix didn't sell out or cave in to pressure from competitors Wal-mart, Amazon, and Blockbuster Online.

• Netflix added 15,000 titles last year, to have 55,000 titles and more than 42 million DVDs total.

• Netflix added over a million subscribers, to have more than 3.5 million subscribers

• Netflix has 37 shipping centers shipping 1 million DVDs each day

• Netflix introduced new pricing levels:
  $9.99 Unlimited DVDs, one (1) title out at a time
  $11.99 Four DVDs a month, two (2) titles out at a time
  $14.99 Unlimited DVDs, two (2) titles out at a time
  $17.99 Unlimited DVDs, three (3) titles out at a time
  $23.99 Unlimited DVDs, four (4) titles out at a time
  $29.99 Unlimited DVDs, five (5) titles out at a time
  $35.99 Unlimited DVDs, six (6) titles out at a time
  $41.99 Unlimited DVDs, seven (7) titles out at a time
  $47.99 Unlimited DVDs, eight (8) titles out at a time

• Netflix put partnership with Tivo on hold

• Netflix launched new Profile feature

• Rob Pisano left the Netflix board of directors

• Netflix postponed movie downloads

• Netflix put ads on mailers

• Netflix proposed a settlement to the Chavis v. Netflix class-action lawsuit

• Netflix launched their store, selling 100% guaranteed previously-owned DVDs