Netflix Introduces "Watch Instantly" for Macs. Finally.
More than a year ago, when I first noticed that Netflix was offering a "Watch Instantly" option for members to enjoy movies by streaming them to their computers, I thought the future had arrived.
I was thrilled. I was ecstatic. No more trips to the video store! No more waiting a day or two for my Netflix videos!
Oh, but of course, there was a catch. Netflix only offered the service to PC users -- and a Mac desktop is my main home computer. So I had to go elsewhere online for my video-streaming entertainment. But today, Netflix lured me back.
The company finally opened up its video-watching application for Mac users for beta testing, and you can sign up for it at this web address. Hope it's not too late for you to join the testing group.
Netflix announced the development on Friday on its blog. (Thanks, by the way, to @charmcitygavin for alerting me to the development via Twitter.com.) To read more news coverage of the roll-out, check out these stories in Macworld and CNET's Crave technology blog.
The "Watch Instantly" feature is in addition to the monthly DVD rental plan you can choose. Basically, you can choose the plan for unlimited number of renting for one DVD at a time, but have access to about 12,000 movie titles for unlimited online viewing. All for just $8.99 a month.
Not bad -- especially if you've gotten used to watching movies on your home computer. Netflix now wants you watching their rentals on your computer, too. It's the latest move in Netflix's grasping for your business, no matter where you happen to watch movies in your home. Just last week, the company announced a deal with TiVo, which Consuming Interests covered. TiVo users who are Netflix members can watch rented movies via their TiVo box, at no extra charge. And it's been going toe-to-toe in the online push for the last few years with Blockbuster, which offers its own video-rental-download service (but it doesn't work for Macs and the pricing plan is far different.)
Sure, my Mac runs on an Intel processor and can run Windows, but I didn't feel like spending the money on new software, though many consumers did choose that as a solution early on.
So here goes: I now can watch as many movies as my schedule permits, for a little more than the cost of a regular movie ticket each month. But the real question is: will I have the time? If only this had been around when I was in college.
I signed up for the beta test and will let you know what I think of it. If you've signed up and have already watched movies on your Mac, feel free to let us know what you think of the service in the comments section below.
Comments
Gus, thanks for posting this ... the player will increase my Netflix churn exponentially and overcomes a major downside to the red-envelope system --- not being in the mood to watch the discs you have at home.
No more will I be stymied by the significant other's inability to churn through his selections in a timely manner ... grrrr.
Posted by: Liz | November 3, 2008 5:47 PM