Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

October 7, 2008 3:08:15 PM CDT

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Netflix in Heated Race for Online Movies

Posted Oct 27, 07 3:10 PM CDT in Business,  Technology 

(Newser) – They beat Blockbuster, but can Netflix outpace rivals in the race to show downloaded movies on TV? "It's like a three-act play, and we're in the opening minutes of the second act," said Netflix exec Steve Swasey. Act two is where startups like Vudu take on giants like Amazon to plug home TVs into the ‘Net—while Netflix tries to adapt before its DVDs hit the dumpster, the Washington Post reports.   

Netflix launched online viewing of about 5% of flicks in January, and 10 million have been seen so far, a paltry stat next to its 1.6 million DVD rentals per day. But the company also competes by picking up indie flicks that others reject, like John Waters’ This Filthy World. Netflix is “making available films that you cannot see in your local theater, and that's incredibly important," Waters said. 

Source Washington Post

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • NetFlix Tries to Pre-Empt Apple

    Jan 13, 08 10:59 PM CST
    NetFlix Tries to Pre-Empt Apple Netflix and Apple are preparing to go head-to-head in the burgeoning business of delivering movies over the Internet . AP reports Netflix is expanding its fledgling movie streaming service,  Watch Instantly, to give most subscribers unlimited access to 6,000 titles. The move comes just as Apple is about to launch its movie streaming service to iTunes users. More »

  • Netflix Finds Itself in House of Business Horrors

    Jul 24, 07 4:44 PM CDT
    Netflix faced a second wave of bad news today as its stock price plummeted and its website remained inaccessible to visitors. The company announced price cuts Sunday and yesterday absorbed a triple blow: lowered sales expectations, a subscriber decline, and a Wall Street downgrade. The website crash then left the company's signature interface offline for nearly 24 hours. More »

  • Blockbuster Bets on Blu-Ray

    Jun 18, 07 6:36 PM CDT
    Movie rental giant Blockbuster picked sides today in the hotly contested battle over high-definition DVDs. Starting in July, Blockbuster will buy all of its new high-def DVDs in Sony's Blu-ray format, a damaging blow to rival Toshiba's HD DVD, which the rental company had stocked jointly until now. More »

  • Apple Courts Studios for Rental Rights

    Jun 11, 07 7:30 AM CDT
    Apple Courts Studios for Rental Rights Apple is buttering up top movie studios as it prepares to launch a video-on-demand service to contend with cable and satellite companies. Apple plans to offer each movie as a 30-day rental for $2.99, and it's telling studios the term of lease means they won't take a hit on DVD sales. More »

Mei Michelson prepares to return movies to Netflix from her home in Palo Alto, Calif., in 2007. The company has 5% of its fare available online, but is competing with the likes of Amazon to make all movies...   (Associated Press)
Netflix customer Carleen Ho holds up a Netflix DVD she rented in 2007. The company has 5% of its fare available online, but is competing with the likes of Amazon to make all movies downloadable. (AP...   (Associated Press)
Netflix has 5% of its fare available online, but is competing with the likes of Amazon to make all movies downloadable.   (Getty Images)
Netflix founder Reed Hastings. The company has 5% of its fare available online, but is competing with the likes of Amazon to make all movies downloadable.   (KRT Photos)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
Our editors also recommend:

Threads (
1
 of 1)

Tags

movie  • Apple  • DVD  • Netflix  • Blockbuster  • Vudu  • John Waters


Loading...

Premium Articles from HighBeam

Find more articles like this

Today's Most Popular

Loading...

Other Technology Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Newser gives you more news in less time. We search for the best and most important stories all over the web, read them for you, and deliver concise and sharp summaries—along with links to the full text. Newser provides a way to stay on top of an ever-expanding horizon of news and opinion—politics, sports, business, trends, technology, personalities, crimes, and controversies. Newser keeps you not just better informed, but, with our signature graphic interface and smart condensed format, more enjoyably informed.

Learn more »