In Praise of Netflix

I really, really like Netflix.  It can’t be beat for its convenience and economy, and I have watched many very good movies that I easily would have missed.  With over 100,000 DVDs in their library, there are certainly more than enough to choose from, no matter what your preference.

Netflix started out several years ago by touting its no late fees arrangement. I suppose from a marketing point of view, it’s a brilliant concept.  They must have figured out that a great many consumers were unhappy paying a late fee to a local video rental store; in the grand scheme of things, returning borrowed movies is low on the agenda, and these fees can really add up.  With Netflix, though, there are no due dates or late fees, ever.  When you’re done with a movie, you simply drop it in any mailbox using a prepaid return envelope.  As I said, the convenience can’t be beat.

I also like that you can create a wish list of films that you would like to watch, and as you return one DVD by mail, another one from your list is shipped out to you.  I usually receive the new one in 3 days.  It’s that easy.

But for me the best part is that Netflix uses technology to become a wonderful referral source for movies I might like.  How this works is that, after you’ve watched a movie you grade it from one to five stars; in this way, Netflix “learns” what you like and don’t like.  That facilitates recommendations.  For example, if I click on Little Miss Sunshine, a 2006 comedy, and ask for “Movies Like This,” Netflix will recommend Sideways and Juno.  If I click on Amelie, Netflix will recommend Priceless, another Audrey Tautou movie.

In addition, Netflix has a section called “Movies You’ll Love” which are suggestions based on your ratings.  In any case, Netflix will predict how well you will like any given movie, based on your previous ratings.  There are also brief descriptions of the movie plot and you can also read reviews by several film critics.

They have a very large selection of just about everything: hit movies, musicals, international flicks, documentaries, silent movies, and TV series.  If you don’t get HBO, you can still watch In Treatment with Gabriel Byrne. Don’t get Showtime?  You can still watch old episodes of Weeds.

Do I sound like a commercial? Only telling you the good stuff?  Okay, there is one glitch that I’ve occasionally encountered; from my experience, about 5% of the DVDs are damaged.  If you run across a problem like this, you can request a replacement disk, which will be sent out immediately.  So for me, it is an occasional annoyance, but not a deal killer.

I recently received an e-mail saying that if I forwarded it to friends, they could try Netflix for free for one month.  I’m not going to willy nilly send an email to everyone in my contacts list, but if you’re interested in trying Netflix out, send an e-mail to me at rstreit@keyfeeonly.com, and I’ll be happy to forward the message to you.  Their offer expires June 15th.

FYI, the cost of a monthly plan depends on how many DVDs you have out at one time, but vary from $4.99 (2 movies per month) to $16.99 for 3 DVDs at a time with unlimited renting.

As I mentioned, there are some really good movies that I would have missed or even bypassed without their recommendation.  This is only a partial list, because there really are too many to post:
Antonia’s Line, Ballets Russes, Billy Elliot, Elsa & Fred, The Girl in the Café, My Mother’s Castle, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, Raise the Red Lantern, Smiles of a Summer Night, and Together.

And, no, in case you were wondering, I’m not getting a commission from Netflix for referring this great service.  So, why am I doing this?  For two simple reasons: first, because we all need a little less stress in our lives and second, because I really like Netflix.