On May 5, a reader over at What's Expiring on Netflix noticed that a lot of titles were expiring from his queue. Then another reader responded that the titles were coming from Miramax/Dimension.
This got my attention. I examined the sheer number of titles from both studios and noticed something alarming. Every one of them was expiring on Netflix on June 1.
Titles like Pulp Fiction, Clerks (which would have expired on May 31), both Kill Bills, Chasing Amy, Adventureland, City of God, Enchanted April, etc. So I did what any reasonable person with a blog focusing on Netflix additions and departures would do. I posted them.
Over the span of the next couple of days, I went through every title and placed it in this blog. During my expanded search, I noticed a few titles was renewed and informed Carol over at What's Expiring on Netflix.
Surely, I thought, this is just the first salvo. Perhaps more selective renewals were to come or maybe Netflix would have taken out the drama altogether and renewed everything.
Then on May 9, Netflix dropped the other shoe. They took out expirations on the DVD side. Supposedly this was part of a remodel where they placed triangles on the boxes which allows you to play a movie from the DVD side instead of a blocky Play box.
But I suspected what they were doing. They were trying to damp down the outrage before it got out of control. I can't think of another reason why Netflix would remove the expiration dates.
No international company worth over $32 billion should hide pertinent/important information from its customers or go out of their way to make it difficult to find this information. It basically shows that the company doesn't respect its customers. Customers that are helping to fund a major international expansion. Customers whose rates are fixing to go up to $9.99 in the coming months.
That's right. Rates are going up and we're losing hundreds of titles. Quick, check the June 1 expiration date. When you've stopped crying, come back here. We'll wait.
The call to action in the second half of the title is not about getting those titles back. It's all spilled milk at this point. A bit of a wasted effort. Netflix, to its credit, is trying to fill the void to a certain extent with big ticket items like the Lethal Weapon films and the Back to the Future trilogy. It's a small start.
But there's one huge problem:
Here, you can see that Netflix has lost over 1,500 titles from one year ago, probably closer to 2,000 after June 1. This reflects the loss of several contracts such as the older films from Kino Lorber on Independence Day last year and the Epix departure in October. This however does not reflect the upcoming Miramax/Dimension mass exodus coming June 1 (the batch of non-exclusive titles that content director Ted Sarandos referred to in his Netflix blog).
It's too late to ask Netflix to reconsider signing that contract. But it's not too late to ask for more notice.
One week is not enough time to make a dent in the hundreds of titles leaving on June 1. Two weeks would be better. One month would be ideal. If one knows in advance when something is leaving, they can plan to fit that in their schedule. But without warning, people might not be able to find that new movie they tell their friends about or that moment that makes them fall in love with films.
So what are we wanting here at NQB?
Two Week Notice minimally, 4 weeks ideally: Netflix's competitors warn their viewers when a film is leaving their service. Amazon lets its subscribers know a month in advance when a film is leaving Prime. Hulu recently switched from a queue to a Watchlist, but they offer two weeks notice. Netflix should at the least take follow Hulu's example and to remain competitive with its rivals, follow Amazon Prime's.
A More Prominent Place for Expiration Dates: What Netflix was doing before May 8 was fine. Expiration dates should be seen prominently in both the DVD and Streaming sections and not require subscribers to click on one or several links to find it. A global company should be upfront about its information, not hide it. Placing the information on the main page when searching titles on the DVD page is a good start. Placing it on the Overview section of the film page on the Watch Instantly side may take more time, but it would show a good faith effort in their subscribers.
Ahem, and this goes for titles now streaming as well, Netflix. OK, maybe not the Watch Instantly part, but definitely the DVD part.
And how do we do it?
You can attract more flies with honey than vinegar: Anger won't solve anything. The people you speak to over the phone, on Twitter and on Facebook are probably not the ones who make decisions, but they can spread the word to those who are in charge. Keep in mind that you're not just fighting for yourself, but for your fellow subscribers as well. Some kind words and a more even tone can make your complaint/concerns better received and lead to a better outcome.
Do mention their competitors: I presume that Netflix wants to be competitive with their rivals. Bring up how Amazon Prime and Hulu gives subscribers 2-4 weeks notice when it comes to informing their customers. Ask them if Netflix is willing to match the one month they already give out to TV series for expiring films.
Be patient, yet persistent: Change doesn't come overnight. But if we keep working at it, change will come. And don't give up if the results don't come right away. It make take a concerted effort of weeks or maybe even months before they see the light. But if we all join up, it will happen.
Contact Information:
Customer service number: 1-866-579-7172
Facebook: Netflix on Facebook
Twitter: Netflix US on Twitter
Be sure to remain kind and courteous to others when talking to Netflix and thank you for your help. Let's make things happen!
This got my attention. I examined the sheer number of titles from both studios and noticed something alarming. Every one of them was expiring on Netflix on June 1.
Titles like Pulp Fiction, Clerks (which would have expired on May 31), both Kill Bills, Chasing Amy, Adventureland, City of God, Enchanted April, etc. So I did what any reasonable person with a blog focusing on Netflix additions and departures would do. I posted them.
Over the span of the next couple of days, I went through every title and placed it in this blog. During my expanded search, I noticed a few titles was renewed and informed Carol over at What's Expiring on Netflix.
Surely, I thought, this is just the first salvo. Perhaps more selective renewals were to come or maybe Netflix would have taken out the drama altogether and renewed everything.
Then on May 9, Netflix dropped the other shoe. They took out expirations on the DVD side. Supposedly this was part of a remodel where they placed triangles on the boxes which allows you to play a movie from the DVD side instead of a blocky Play box.
But I suspected what they were doing. They were trying to damp down the outrage before it got out of control. I can't think of another reason why Netflix would remove the expiration dates.
No international company worth over $32 billion should hide pertinent/important information from its customers or go out of their way to make it difficult to find this information. It basically shows that the company doesn't respect its customers. Customers that are helping to fund a major international expansion. Customers whose rates are fixing to go up to $9.99 in the coming months.
That's right. Rates are going up and we're losing hundreds of titles. Quick, check the June 1 expiration date. When you've stopped crying, come back here. We'll wait.
The call to action in the second half of the title is not about getting those titles back. It's all spilled milk at this point. A bit of a wasted effort. Netflix, to its credit, is trying to fill the void to a certain extent with big ticket items like the Lethal Weapon films and the Back to the Future trilogy. It's a small start.
But there's one huge problem:
Number of Netflix Titles by Month
Chart courtesy of New on Netflix USA
(MaFt's website is another good source for information by the way)
Here, you can see that Netflix has lost over 1,500 titles from one year ago, probably closer to 2,000 after June 1. This reflects the loss of several contracts such as the older films from Kino Lorber on Independence Day last year and the Epix departure in October. This however does not reflect the upcoming Miramax/Dimension mass exodus coming June 1 (the batch of non-exclusive titles that content director Ted Sarandos referred to in his Netflix blog).
It's too late to ask Netflix to reconsider signing that contract. But it's not too late to ask for more notice.
One week is not enough time to make a dent in the hundreds of titles leaving on June 1. Two weeks would be better. One month would be ideal. If one knows in advance when something is leaving, they can plan to fit that in their schedule. But without warning, people might not be able to find that new movie they tell their friends about or that moment that makes them fall in love with films.
So what are we wanting here at NQB?
Two Week Notice minimally, 4 weeks ideally: Netflix's competitors warn their viewers when a film is leaving their service. Amazon lets its subscribers know a month in advance when a film is leaving Prime. Hulu recently switched from a queue to a Watchlist, but they offer two weeks notice. Netflix should at the least take follow Hulu's example and to remain competitive with its rivals, follow Amazon Prime's.
A More Prominent Place for Expiration Dates: What Netflix was doing before May 8 was fine. Expiration dates should be seen prominently in both the DVD and Streaming sections and not require subscribers to click on one or several links to find it. A global company should be upfront about its information, not hide it. Placing the information on the main page when searching titles on the DVD page is a good start. Placing it on the Overview section of the film page on the Watch Instantly side may take more time, but it would show a good faith effort in their subscribers.
Ahem, and this goes for titles now streaming as well, Netflix. OK, maybe not the Watch Instantly part, but definitely the DVD part.
And how do we do it?
You can attract more flies with honey than vinegar: Anger won't solve anything. The people you speak to over the phone, on Twitter and on Facebook are probably not the ones who make decisions, but they can spread the word to those who are in charge. Keep in mind that you're not just fighting for yourself, but for your fellow subscribers as well. Some kind words and a more even tone can make your complaint/concerns better received and lead to a better outcome.
Do mention their competitors: I presume that Netflix wants to be competitive with their rivals. Bring up how Amazon Prime and Hulu gives subscribers 2-4 weeks notice when it comes to informing their customers. Ask them if Netflix is willing to match the one month they already give out to TV series for expiring films.
Be patient, yet persistent: Change doesn't come overnight. But if we keep working at it, change will come. And don't give up if the results don't come right away. It make take a concerted effort of weeks or maybe even months before they see the light. But if we all join up, it will happen.
Contact Information:
Customer service number: 1-866-579-7172
Facebook: Netflix on Facebook
Twitter: Netflix US on Twitter
Be sure to remain kind and courteous to others when talking to Netflix and thank you for your help. Let's make things happen!
According to various sources, there has been a "refresh" of Miramax titles as of May 31. No word on what a "refresh" means, although the press reports seem to say that some of the Miramax titles that expired on May 31 will return sometime in the undefined future. My guess is that Miramax titles may rotate in the future in a fashion similar to the older Epix titles. Does this mean that someone at Netflix finally realized that removing 400 movie titles, even when replaced by Jurassic Park, Back to the Future, Lethal Weapon, Spotlight and The Big Short, was more than a "refresh?. Or did they decide it was bad form to remove 400 films while they are in the process of raising their monthly subscription fee?
ReplyDeleteProbably the latter. I think they had the same vision the judge shared on the Miracle on 34th Street where he saw his career flash before his eyes. Only in Netflix's case, it was the angry cancellations of thousands of American customers disgruntled that they're paying more for less as the company was fearing that their decision to turn on all the countries at once was going to backfire.
DeleteI do think that maybe starting in July that we might see some more of those titles come back on a rotating basis sort of how Epix rotates its older titles like Tetro, the Bonds, etc. I don't think we're getting all those titles back at once, but maybe we'll get more than what we have now.