netflix.

I am conflicted about Netflix. It is clearly the best DVD rental solution out there, has a huge selction, and is way above any walk-in place. Because of this, I will probably never switch. But lately, I feel that the service level has deteriorated a little bit. When I first got it about a year ago, it was great - every movie in my queue would be sent out very quickly on the same day that I returned a previous one. Lately, this has not been the case. Sometimes they don't send the DVD out until one or two days after the previous return, and this really cuts into my movie watching!

And then, I hear about their practice of "throttling," where lNetflix gives lower-volume customers a higher priority over customers like me, who rent a lot more DVDs per month. Although this does make sense from a business standpoint, it still pisses me off. I imagine that people like me, who have a 400+ long queue and have been loyal customers for a very long time are much better for the company in terms of long-term profits. We are more likely to renew our subscription every month, and are more active in the review-writing and greater Netflix community. Why should the company set us aside for more casual customers, who, one, are probably more likely to cancel their subscription on a whim, and two, are more likely to substitute away to another competing service like Blockbuster.

IMHO they need to focus a lot more on building customer loyalty and retaining their current subscriber base, instead of alienating us and focusing on new, less predictable ones. As I have learned in several of my business classes, it is a lot harder to attract new customers than it is to keep your old ones.

For more on Netflix throttling, see here.