Goodbye Netflix

It is with a heavy heart that I just cancelled my Netflix subscription, following a ridiculous argument on the phone with their customer service dept. The episode featured a operator who said "let me get my supe" a zillion times before I said "It's your *supervisor* not your g-damn lunch" which probably explains why said "supe" and I didn't get along either. I am now forced to cxl it because I lack the moral courage to say "I enjoy the service too much to let this ruin it." Alas, I have testicles, and so Netflix may rot in the deepest pits of hell before they get another dime of mine.

Netflix rocks. End of story.

This is less of a post than a request for people to get a grip.

A few months ago Netflix raised its prices to - gasp! - about $16 a month for unlimited streaming plus DVD by mail service. From the outcry it raised you'd have thought they started charging people for the oxygen they breathe, instead of, you know, an optional entertainment expense.

I love Netflix. Nay, I ADORE Netflix, and I'm left speechless at the short term memory of all the haters out there. $16 a month for unlimited streaming and a constant rotation of DVD's is nothing, even for someone as poor as I am. It's less than the cost of two movie tickets, and about the cost of four rentals from Blockbuster. (not including the late fees, the cost of gas to get to the shop, etc.)

You remember Blockbuster? The shady promotions, the high cost of rentals, the shoddy service, and the late fees up the yazoo. You wanna return to that, or reward them by frequenting their streaming service? Go right ahead, sucker.

Ah, but then there's the complaints that the streaming service has a 'limited' inventory, and that it just isn't 'worth it'. I have 474 films/shows in my instant queue right now. If you can't find something to watch, I assure you, your tastes are too pedestrian and stale. Go watch Transformers 3 again and tell us how its like, the greatest movie ever.

Now, in a rather sloppy move, Netflix has botched another PR gambit by announcing their spinning off their signature mail service to a separate site, Qwikster.com. Initially, it annoyed me too, because it seemed to me like they were abandoning the DVD portion of their business. That, of course, is exactly what they are doing. They're spinning it off knowing its a dinosaur in the making, and that it'll be easier to kill off a little used site than chop off half your company when the writing's on the wall. And that's ok, because it means they are trying to adapt and survive, and that's fine by me.

I'm a Netflix fan, and I hope I have the chance to remain one for many years to come.

Dick Tracy

Smiley is home watching (and enjoying) the 1961 Dick Tracy cartoons. Thank you Netflix!