As the demand for high-definition Blu-ray movie discs continues to increase, Netflix will now increase high definition disc fees to help boost inventory so that it can fairly keep pace with anticipated demand.
"We’re committed to providing a high quality Blu-ray experience for our members who choose to add Blu-ray access, and in order to do that we need to adjust Blu-ray pricing," Netflix VP of Marketing Jessie Becker said in a statement on the company’s blog. "As a result, the monthly charge for Blu-ray access is increasing for most plans and will now vary by plan."
A Netflix subscriber currently receiving three movie discs and unlimited streaming rentals will now be forced to pay $21 per month, which is an increase from $17 per month. The company previously charged a $1 premium for Blu-ray rentals, regardless of the particular plan.
Full pricing updates can be found on the company’s blog.
Netflix has more than 1,300 Blu-ray movie titles available to rent, and will be able to increase that number thanks to the price hike. Despite the higher cost of Blu-ray movies, Netflix aims to double the number of Blu-ray subscribers before the end of 2009.
Netflix carved out a niche market for itself by offering DVD rentals by mail with an intuitive online management interface. The service now caters to more than 10 million subscribers and Blu-ray now controls about 10 percent of the company’s overall movie rentals.
The new rental rates will officially go into effect on April 27.
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8 Comments
I've already signed up with Blockbuster. I will clsoe out my Netflix account just prior to it's next billing. Instead of $20.99 a month, I'll pay $15.99 to the company that doesn't charge more for Blu-ray.
Besides, the real cost of making Blu-ray discs vs making DVDs isn't anywhere near the cost premium they charge at the retail level. And there's no way Netflix pays retail prices for its discs. Then take into account the number of times each disc get rented, and the difference in cost per disc is tiny. So for them to claim it's a cost issue is just bogus. They just want to screw the customer some more. Maybe it's because their stupid CEO thinks his taxes should be raised to 50% and he needs the extra profits to offset the higher taxes he WANTS to pay. (What a moron.) All I know is I'm not footing the bill.
So long Netflix.
They themselves point to the cost of dvds vs blu-ray discs, implying they pay those rates. Quoted from their letter to me, "And as you've probably heard, Blu-ray discs are substantially more expensive than standard definition DVDs." Yes, I did hear that. Sadly for them, I know it's only true at the retail level. I know they pay "fees" (whatever you want to call them) for the right to rent the discs, which isn't the same as the costs of the discs at retail. Fees aside, they do not pay retail prices for the discs themselves. Often they don't even use retail discs, but copies made for them for the purpose of rental. For them to claim that the "fees" for a movie are higher because the media it comes on is different would be just silly. If the fees are different, either they are stupid and getting taken by the movie companies, or they are lying. Either way, I don't want to pay for it when their competition isn't asking for it. The only legit cost difference they could point to would be the disc cost, which is minimal. A difference of $2 or less per disc production costs at retail bulk rates. Just because the studios think it's ok to rape the public by selling for $8 more a disc that costs only $2 more to make doesn't mean we're all so stupid we don't know what the game is. Netflix is lying or inept, and just want's more money, plain and simple.
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