Today Netflix announced that they are canceling plans for their DVD mail-rental spinoff Qwikster.
In a message emailed to subscribers, as well as posted on their blog, Netflix representatives said “This means no change: one website, one account, one password… in other words, no Qwikster.”
In September, the company announced that they would be splitting the Netflix service – which also streams movies and television shows through computers, consoles, mobile units and other equipped devices – from the part of the service that mails DVD and Blu-Ray discs to customers. The Netflix half would focus only on the streaming business, and a new company, Qwikster, would handle the mail aspect. It would also, reportedly, begin renting video games.
“Comsumers value the simplicity Netflix has always offered and we respect that,” said company president Reed Hastings in this morning’s announcement. “There is a difference between moving quickly – which Netflix has done very well for years – and moving too fast, which is what we did in this case.”
Netflix went on to say that while there has been a bit of fluctuation regarding these changes, the price increases from July would remain the same and they are done adjusting that.
Neither Hastings nor the press release nor blogged message address the video game rental plans, and we have reached out for comment. More on that as it develops.
[source] Netflix
Not surprising considering the backlash Netflix received after the announcement. Still they got a bigger backlash after announcing the price hike.
Makes you almost wonder if Netflix devised this whole "Qwikster" scheme to take the heat off of the price increase. Announce a new product to piss people off AND divert attention from other areas, then cancel new product showing that you "listen" to the masses, meanwhile the price scheme goes up without much of a hiccup.
I had the same thought, Crimson. This all seems a little too much like the New Coke debacle, introducing a change to the business that is clearly idiotic only to roll it back as a way to say they're listening to their customers. If they were really listening to their customers they wouldn't have made the changes in the first place.
Except they're not going back to the old way at all, so it's not a big difference. And now they're only considering games. Way to waste everyone's time, Netflix.
I'd actually be kinda disappointed if they decide not to do the games. I don't really want to subscribe to Gamefly because they take FOREVER, and it'd be nice to be able to jump back and forth between movies and games depending on what my wants are at the time.
I'm not interested in a game mail rental service for the same reason I don't rent games from regular rental places anymore
*shrug* If it was like a dollar or so extra from Netflix, I'd be ok with that. Sometimes I just don't want to watch any of the movies in my queue, so instead of just sitting on the latest one until I am ready to watch it, I'd rather bump up a game that I want to try but don't want to buy or couldn't find anywhere.