So Long, Netflix

I had to break up with Netflix last week.

I don't hate them, and they’re not the worst movie source I ever had. I may even be back for more someday. I just couldn’t let them treat me like crap. And when you raise prices by 50 percent out of the blue, that’s what you’re doing.

For me, it really is the principal of the matter.  I can’t just absorb a $6 hike on a $10 price tag and continue doing business as if it didn’t happen. Whether it’s “worth” it is really beside the point. A price increase of that magnitude is just
intolerable.

The Inquirer took an odd stance in their editorial page, describing the old $10 deal to be “amazing,” and declaring, “Netflix is still the service that offers the most to consumers,” as if the matter were not up for debate. Their opinion piece read like a Netflix press release.

I imagine it really is worth the price for some people. I might have stayed, too, if the streaming library was better—but the selection is positively pathetic.   

How bad is it? Here’s a quick test for you: think of the next ten things you want to see on DVD. If you’re anything like me, nine of them won’t be available in the Netflix streaming library. It’s that bad.

In this household, the Netflix loss was a gain for the local rental kiosks. We promptly watched two new release rentals from a Blockbuster kiosk for a dollar each. That’s a pricing plan that works well for the way our family uses a movie service. 

But nothing's perfect. Eventually we’ll need to figure out a new way to watch an HBO TV series, like "Boardwalk Empire," but there’s nothing I need to see bad enough to sit still and take it like that from Netflix.