TMCnet News

Netflix Drops Add to DVD Queue from Streaming Devices

[January 18, 2011]

Netflix Drops Add to DVD Queue from Streaming Devices

Originally posted on VoIP & Gadgets Blog, here: http://blog.tmcnet.com/blog/tom-keating/home-entertainment/netflix-drops-add-to-dvd-queue-from-streaming-devices.asp.

Netflix today announced on its blog that it’s removing the “Add to DVD Queue” feature from streaming devices causing a revolt amongst Netflix users. Thus, you will no longer be able to add titles to your DVD queue from your iPhone, iPad, Blu-Ray player, PS3, etc.

Here's what Netflix’s Jamie Odell said:

We’re removing the “Add to DVD Queue” option from streaming devices. We’re doing this so we can concentrate on offering you the titles that are available to watch instantly. Further, providing the option to add a DVD to your Queue from a streaming device complicates the instant watching experience and ties up resources that are better used to improve the overall streaming functionality.

You're telling me that simply picking a movie and sending it to my queue is too resource intensive? C'mon. It's probably like 20 bytes of data sent to Netflix to add a movie to your DVD queue. Something else is going on here. Why are they directing users to the website to force users to add movies to their DVD queue? Is it that Netflix wants the page views? Unlikely since they don't really serve up ads. Is it that Netflix feels their recommendation engine on the website helps customers find additional movies to pick from? Seems unlikely as well. Perhaps Netflix figures if they can reduce the mailing of DVDs they can save on mailing costs. Not that is a possibility. If even 1% of DVDs are forgotten about that that you discover via your Netflix streaming device, that can easily add up to millions of dollars in mailing costs.

One commenter to the Netflix blog writes:

Thats great except for the fact that I constantly add movies to my instant queue and then netflix removes it from the list as the movie is no longer available instantly. Then I can no longer remember which movie it was and it doesnt show up on my dvd list. This is completely frustrating. If you are going to add movies to instant then they should be available all the time not just a limited time.

I concur. This is a bad move by Netflix. As a Netflix user I'm not happy about this change. Netflix users we must do battle against the Dark Side of cost-cutting, customer-unfriendly tactics by Netflix! light-saber-battle