Verizon Considering Purchase of Netflix 139
schwit1 writes "Shares of Netflix soared more than 6% Monday on a report that Verizon Communications is considering buying the troubled movie renter. Verizon is reportedly evaluating whether a purchase of Netflix could provide an entry into the video delivery business, DealReporter said, citing a source close to the matter. The news comes as Netflix continues to struggle from a series of missteps earlier this year when it raised subscription prices and separated its DVD-by-mail service and streaming. Netflix's stock price plunged to a new 52-week low two weeks ago when the company warned it would fall to a loss in 2012 if it failed to boost its bruised customer base."
Can you screw me now? (Score:5, Insightful)
Wowsers, if you thought Netflix was nickel-and-diming you, wait til Verizon gets hold of them. Probably cost you a quarter every time you use fast forward.
Verizon: we keep on working you like a whore. (Score:3)
You forgot one of their old slogans that still applies to Verizon, and would apply to Netflix.
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Good! After all the whining of a measly $2/month increase in price brought on Netflix by the movie studios, I'd say the spoiled brats that make up TEH BLAGOSPHERE needed a cold, hard lesson in "shut your fucking trap and learn to appreciate what you've got or someone might make it worse"! If it weren't for their incessant, self-centered whining*, Netflix wouldn't have lost quite so many customers and money and would've still looked too expensive for Verizon to absorb! So, congrats on digging too deep, gu
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Damn, I'm torn between calling you a dumbfag or a prophet :P
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Seriously Slashdot, implement a +6 for this. Comment of the year.
Re:Can you screw me now? (Score:5, Insightful)
I already had a relatively expensive plan so it was only a few bucks for me, but some people's plans almost doubled in price. Granted $7 or $8 is not that much in the scheme of things, but if my price doubled overnight without bringing any improvements in the service then I might also be pissed. I understand it was out of Netflix's control, but the condescending (lack of) explanation was a huge misstep. They should have just been forthcoming and honest about it and a lot of this rage could have been avoided.
Re:Can you screw me now? (Score:5, Insightful)
Would +1 if I had mod points.
That is the whole point, it was never that expensive, but it almost doubled in price (and was a whole lot more then $2 mentioned).
And to make matters worse the company was like. "We are sure that our customers absolutely love how their bill will be double next month while getting the exact same service. What an amazing thing we are doing for our customers."
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Netflix had a chance to win here. They could have just been honest outright and said "Last year we paid $50,000,000 for this content. Now we're being asked to pay $300,000,000[1] for it. We unfortunately have to raise our fees in order to keep bringing you the same excellent service that we always have been."
[1] Numbers from the department of pulling figures out of my ass
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Netflix had a chance to win here. They could have just been honest outright and said "Last year we paid $50,000,000 for this content. Now we're being asked to pay $300,000,000[1] for it. We unfortunately have to raise our fees in order to keep bringing you the same excellent service that we always have been."
[1] Numbers from the department of pulling figures out of my ass
I can imagine a severe "anti-defamation" clause in their contract with the content producers, something to the effect of: "Purchaser of license shall never directly or indirectly disclose the cost of license in any manner not strictly required by law, and then only in a positive light. Any comment attributable to purchaser of license which in any way may be construed to imply that license is not an absolute bargain, and wonderful value will be grounds for retro-active tripling of said license purchase pric
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Shit, if Version buys Netflix, I'd expect the most basic plan they offer will be at least $40/month and would probably have way less content than Netflix has now (newer movies will be premium service).
I just have to say the following
Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!
They did it to themselves. (Score:5, Interesting)
The fact of the matter is that the majority of people on the old Netflix plan only used the streaming service or the DVD plan because it came free with the one they wanted. They never had any interest in paying for the other service, so when Netflix decided to start charging for it, they naturally dropped the one they didn't use.
There was a smaller group that liked both, and decided that even with a 60% price increase, that it was worth it.
There was an even smaller group that liked both, but were frustrated with the streaming selection, annoyed at the screwed up website. They were already looking at other options, but nothing came close to the combined value of DVDs and streaming. When the price increase came, this changed and other options started looking more competitive so they left. But again this was a very small group.
I wouldn't call people who don't want to pay for a service they hardly use spoiled. I wouldn't call people who can find a better deal spoiled. I call it obvious, and if Netflix had done any customer research they would have as well.
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When their actions cause Netflix's stock to nosedive such that it makes them a takeover target for Verizon, I'm damn sure going to call them spoiled.
Their bitching over the price increase is going to lead to all of us who stuck with Netflix getting screwed big time by Verizon.
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Wait, you're upset because a bunch of people who were upset with the service they were getting refused to stay with the service and thereby subsidize your use of it, and YOU are calling THEM spoiled?
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Ok, you're right. However, they were very very shortsighted.
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I can't speak to what other people like/dislike about Netflix. In my family, we have had a 3 disc at a time subscription since we bought our first DVD player in 1990-something. Around about 2003-ish, we started paying for a 3 disc at a time subscription for one set of parents (who live in a trailer park with no broadcast TV and are too cheap/poor to purchase cable.) When I was laid off a couple of years ago, and Netflix had been "streaming for free" for awhile, we reduced both subscriptions to 2 discs +
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You realize that this would punish those of us who stayed....
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It was only a 2$/month price change in Netflix's best case. In my case, 3 discs at once, 2 DVD, 1 Bluray plus streaming was 17.99$ previously, and a great deal. They revised that to 27.99$/month for me, and I responded by cancelling.
This single example is the problem Netflix had, in microcosm. Sticker shock. Was it still a good deal at 28$/month? Probably. Could I have adjusted my plan down to, say, single Bluray and streaming to get my old price point back? Looks like. Did I? No.
Why not? Because the differ
They lost 800k in 6 weeks to bloggers? Ludicrous! (Score:2)
I'm one of those "spoiled brats". I'm curious what lesson I learned. I left Netflix and left loudly. So... not sure how it got worse. The service price exceeded benefit. People left. Netflix lost.
Netflix didn't lose money to whining. Netflix lost money because people left. And having left, why do we care one iota if it becomes worse or is bought by Verizon or the People's Republic of China.
Let me nail this point for you: we don't care.
All you are saying is, "Hah! See, the price went up, and you left!
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People already voted with their wallet - if they LEFT Netflix after a minor price bump, do you really think they care if Verizon takes the helm? If I've already taken my toys and gone home I don't care if a bigger bully starts wandering the playground.
Realistically, if Verizon cranks up the restrictions and fees, you can bet that they'll succeed in merely driving the service further into the ground than Netflix could do alone.
Re:Can you screw me now? (Score:5, Insightful)
How is netflix nickel and diming me? It's one rate for streaming to multiple devices, then X amount more depending on how many physical discs you want to hold.
Nickle and diming is what Verizon does - X amount for Y amount of texts, or download limits, or download speeds, or service areas, or content packages, or voice minutes, and of course this is also largely dependent on which device you are using. And multiple devices? psh. Overcharges on service? That's a another horrible part right there.
That's real nickle-and-diming. There are so many gotchas I'd need a small book to describe it all. But this netflix hate I do not understand - it's simple and cheap. Is it that you want their service to be free?
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Try: $3/mo to access the GPS unit built in to your blackberry. That happened.
Verizon buys netflix: Charges you $0.20 every time you watch a film from the Criterion Collection, $0.40 for any movie released in the last 6 months, and $0.35 for any movie released in the last 18 months. On top of your $15/mo fee.
Oh and by the way, you'll need a Verizon Cable TV account to use Netflix if you're in a Verizon service area.
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OP here: I never claimed Netflix was nickel and diming, though some of the squeakier wheels seem to think so. As someone only halfway through a Verizon contract, I can say with confidence that those guys are the absolute freakin worst, lading up all their phones with crapware that do what free apps do, but worse, and with monthly fees on top of it.
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At least netflix' customer support right now is good (call them, and see how long it takes to reach someone-- likely under 45 seconds); can you imagine what billing and support will turn into if Verizon gets its mitts on them?
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My complaint list for verizon is as follows:
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Verizon to purchase Netflix. Netflix to be renamed Shitflix. Customers to shit bricks. Verizon to be renamed Shitbrick.
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Verizon would make it worse off. (Score:3)
Instead of having flat-rate streaming movies, it's an add-on that dings you per movie.
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If the price were to vary by movie, then this would allow Netflix to stream more movies. This is why Amazon is able to stream certain movies that Netflix doesn't.
The "one price fits all" model just doesn't work very well in the real world.
Re:Verizon would make it worse off. (Score:5, Insightful)
The "one price fits all" model just doesn't work very well in the real world.
It doesn't work very well in the idiotic playground of RIAA/MPAA execs. While they may presently inhabit the real, physical world, the term "real world" implies something a bit more broad, and I don't believe the "one price fits all" model has been demolished for all markets.
God no (Score:5, Insightful)
The CRTC will have a fit and use it as even more reason to keep the lecherous US company from stealing Bell's customers. Damn them netflix hooligans with their fairer prices.
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Where's mod points when you need them.... This has got to be the most asinine move from competition point of view up north.
The resident incumbent would jump with joy for such an easy way to throttle this competition.
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Christ I know and i just signed up for netflix streaming. Please oh ye of the noodly appendege - deliver us from verizon.
Oh God no (Score:5, Insightful)
If Verizon buys Netflix, we'll be paying $15/month for streaming to ONE device at a time, and the DVD delivery will be dropped entirely.There will be a limit of 15 streams a month per account, or 50GB of data, whichever comes first. Additional streams will cost $3.99 each. And you'll have to sign a 2-year contract. And if you want to stream to your PHONE, that will be another $15 a month, on top of the $15/month membership.
$5-$20 per device mirroring fee (Score:2)
$5-$20 per device mirroring fee just like the fees they make you pay per cable box to rent them.
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If you like it that much then you should have offline versions.
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I have a roku box, and i only use it for netflix.
If this verizon thing actually happens, and they fuck up the pricing, i will only use it for amazon streaming.
Doctor who, no BBC in my house. I need internet-streaming-something!
Re:Oh God no (Score:5, Funny)
Netflix subscribers, get used to bills like this:
$9.99 - Basic service
$2.55 - Federal taxes
$1.85 - Network Maintenance fee
$2.25 - Copyright owners association fee
$1.45 - Federal Streaming tax
$0.95 - Streaming content insurance
$1.35 - Verizon CEO excess compensation fee
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They won't drop the DVD service. They'll just use the DVD service as overage. You'll start watching a streaming movie online and once you're over quota, they'll just suspend the movie midway through, send you the rest on a DVD, and bill you according to how much more data there was left to watch.
NEW! (Score:4, Insightful)
Streaming that only works well on verizon internet!
Please no, Verizon. (Score:5, Insightful)
It's bad enough that Verizon charges you extra to use functions on your phone that don't have a damn thing to do with their network at all (Mobile Hotspot).
I don't think I want to know how they manage to ruin Netflix, if they were to snatch it up.
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You know, it's bad enough that ISP's, Verizon definitely included, are using bandwidth caps now, which limits the attraction of a service like Netflix.
It's bad enough that Verizon charges you extra to use functions on your phone that don't have a damn thing to do with their network at all (Mobile Hotspot).
I don't think I want to know how they manage to ruin Netflix, if they were to snatch it up.
They'll work it like eBay/PayPal. You sell on eBay, they require you to pay through Paypal.
So Verizon (or Verizster, or whatever they'll be) sets you up with the video/movie you want to watch, then pounds you for the additional overage fee. What's not to like? (from their perspective.)
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They really ought to make the caps apply only to peak usage periods, similar to cell plans with "unlimited nights and weekends." Then you could stream or download your movies during the off-peak periods to save money.
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You know, it's bad enough that ISP's, Verizon definitely included, are using bandwidth caps now, which limits the attraction of a service like Netflix.
Verizon will then be able to get you both ways. The Verizon brand will charge you a fee when you exceed their bandwidth cap, and their new Netflix brand will charge you another fee for exceeding their bandwidth cap (which will surely be introduced when Verizon takes over. I can just see the Verizon execs looking over the Netflix books and saying, "you guys aren't charging by the gigabyte? Oh, this'll be an easy fix!") . Thus, the parent company gets to double dip. It's like printing your own money, only wit
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FiOS isn't everywhere...
Expect their website to be nothing but upsell ads (Score:2)
Just like the Verizon FiOS site.
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And again the content carrier becomes... (Score:5, Insightful)
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They have been involved in the production of documentaries and indie films for a while now, and have recently gotten into TV as well.
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Netflix is going to create new episodes of Arrested Development.
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Aren't they producing a TV show now? (pretty sure I saw a ./ article on that a few days ago)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Cards_(U.S._TV_series) [wikipedia.org]
tl;dr version: Netflix outbid HBO and AMC. Kevin Spacey is the star. It's based on a great BBC series from 1990.
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Hopefully the DOJ will pay attention.
Netflix vulnerable (Score:4, Insightful)
After their recent misstetp they'll likely be a bargain buy. Expect Verizon to only be interested in the technology, IP and media rights portfolio, while they ditch the people who are running the company.
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After their recent misstetp they'll likely be a bargain buy. Expect Verizon to only be interested in the technology, IP and media rights portfolio, while they ditch the people who are running the company.
I'm sure Verizon sees this as the next generation of cable companies. With Netflix being the only real player, this will put them ahead of their competitors in the cable company space (AT&T, Warner, etc.) whose on-demand services are still largely indistinguishable from on-demand 10 years ago. However, I would think that its media rights portfolio would be treated as a toxic asset... its cost is a liability that has thrown Netflix's future into question.
I quit (Score:2)
That'll definitely kill it. Verizon will force folks to subscribe to their cable service and offer it as an add-on or something horrible like that. I can't see how Verizon won't resist squeezing all the blood out of Netflix like everything else they do.
I'm going to go hug a Redbox today.
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Make sure you keep it a secret.
Already screwed... (Score:2)
Already screwed over by Verizon in the past, dropped them as soon as my contract ran out, then swore I would never do business with them again.
I guess I will have that final "nail in the coffin" that pushes me to drop Netflix too. Ah well, it was good while it lasted (11 years).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verizon#Controversies [wikipedia.org]
I love Netflix (Score:5, Insightful)
But if Verizon buys them, I'm cancelling. I just cannot imagine any way that they wouldn't completely destroy Netflix's value proposition.
Re:I love Netflix (Score:5, Insightful)
Not that I don't think you're right, but if you love the service and it's worth it to you then why not wait until they destroy Netflix's value proposition rather than doing it preemptively?
Re:I love Netflix (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:I love Netflix (Score:4, Insightful)
first thing verizon would do is remove the "cancel my service" button
Please someone mod this up. Too many sleaze bag companies use the "make it painful, time consuming and difficult if not impossible to cancel" policy as a way to limit turnover instead of providing good service. That is what turned a planned temporary cancellation of DirecTV into a permanent, bitter grudge to the grave unwillingness to ever do business with them again.
When Netflix's streaming library started shrinking rapidly (including a disappearing TV series I was halfway through) about the same time as the 60% price hike, at least it was easy to cancel. That left me with enough goodwill that I would consider subscribing again if they ever manage to start growing their streaming content. That would not happen if they became just another Verizon service.
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It costs something like $200 to get an attorney to write a letter. How many attorneys letters do you require per year to make your $27 per month LegalShield worthwhile?
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Still, I will watch this very caref
Hastings Earns a generous severance package (Score:2)
Re:Hastings Earns a generous severance package (Score:4, Interesting)
He's probably got a comfy warm seat on Verizon's board waiting for him. There has to be a reason he single-handedly destroyed Netflix from the inside. Nobody is stupid enough to do everything he did just out of the blue.
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Wouldn't surprise me, I have a hard time imagining how anybody could be so incompetent at running a company. I'm sure those sorts of things are said in private at meetings all the time, but to tell the customers that they should just suck it up and that they're expecting to lose customers was unbelievable.
In other words... (Score:1)
I will cancel if Verizon buys Netflix (Score:4, Interesting)
Missteps were mildly annoying, but I never considered cancelling. I _will_ cancel if Verizon acquires Netflix.
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Ditto...the very instant it's announced. That's a promise. That's a guarantee. There is not a single contingency anyone is capable of imagining where my business stays with a Verizon-owned Netflix. They might as well cancel it for me.
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Agreed. Netfilx is sometimes brilliant, sometimes bumbling, but delivering real value. Verizon is as close to the definition of evil in a corporation as you can get this side of a few of the big investment banks and mortgage lenders. Look at how Verizon screwed its union workers, despite all-time high profits, while paying its executives ever-more. Verizon's customers, also often screwed. They are on the front line of the upper class's war against the rest of us.
And the moral of the story is ... (Score:2)
Take it for what it is
Just wail 'til VZ fixes Netflix's customer service (Score:2)
Lily Tomlin [vimeo.com]
Netflix Streaming Selection Sucks (Score:2)
I subscribed to Netflix specifically to get streaming, but I was very disappointed in the movies available for streaming. I know - this is probably the fault of the studios more than Netflix - but nonetheless, after only a couple of months, I had watched everything worth watching and I was really digging to find good content. Netflix has taught me that the *number* of movies is only part of the story - because Netflix has far too much worthless crap.
The technology works fine - I'm not a video/audio snob,
Interesting (Score:1)
So the leadership of Netflix makes some absolutely poor decisions that cause their stock to drop, the next thing that happens is Verizon wants to buy them (greater media consolidation?) and the stocks go up...
It would be fascinating to see who purchased the stock after ti dropped from their truly amateurish business decision.
http://news.slashdot.org/story/11/12/12/1432211/does-mega-media-control-90-of-content [slashdot.org]
http://allthingsd.com/20101021/who-us-netflix-says-its-customers-arent-cord-cutters/ [allthingsd.com]
All of it right
Please No. (Score:2)
I love Netflix. It's my only source of Television now. If Verizon buys Netflix I will be totally screwed.
Not to mention I bet if they buy Netflix the mobile app will be pulled from the market and merged with their "Verizon TV" crap, so anyone not on Verizon will not be able to watch Netflix on their phone anymore.
Dear Verizon... (Score:5, Insightful)
I do, however, loathe you as a company, with every fiber of my being. If you buy Netflix, I will drop my subscription before the ink dries.
So please, don't. I would prefer to keep my Netflix subscription. I will not, however, ever do business with Verizon, under any name I recognize as affiliated with them.
More antitrust mergers, gah! (Score:3)
I don't care if you like Verizon or not, we have to stop content carriers from buying content providers. Comcast+NBC, Verizon+Netflix, etc. It is bad enough that one company provides phone lines + service on those lines, now they are going to provide the whole thing?
"No Mr. Senator, VerizonFlix services will not be hindered when traveling over competing networks. Here, ask our friend Benjamin [google.com] if he sees any problems with it..."
Netflix Less Friendly Already (Score:2)
On my last DVD rental return (I don't use the streaming service due to the much lower quality of the stream, no extra features, and the fact that when I did try it the streaming versions were sometimes markedly inferior in content -- one movie, for example, was missing nearly 20 minutes of what was on the rental DVD) Netflix acknowledged my return, but then didn't send out my next DVD for an entire day. When you're on the 1-at-a-time plan, that is a significant hit.
Their explanation? When I called i
Well there goes that dream (Score:2)
This isn't about acquisition (Score:2)
Sounds like a win for consumers! (Score:3)
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Shouldn't there be a law that prevents big (Score:2)
The end of Netflix! (Score:1)