Netflix lifts movie streaming cap ahead of MacWorld Expo
Agence France-Presse
First Posted 08:01:00 01/15/2008
Filed Under: Infotech, Internet, Cinema, Television
SAN FRANCISCO -- Movie rental giant Netflix on Monday removed limits on the numbers of films subscribers can watch online in what is seen as a pre-emptive strike at Apple, expected to soon launch online movie streaming.
In a new salvo in the war for online movie viewers, the California-based Netflix said it would allow limitless online streaming of videos for all but the most basic subscriber plans.
Prior to Monday's announcement, online movie viewing was "metered" with time limits based on members' monthly service plans.
Industry insiders depict the move as aimed at Apple, which is expected to use the annual MacWorld Expo beginning Tuesday to announce an online movie rental service for iPods, iPhones, and computers.
Netflix, which claims to be the world's largest Internet-based movie rental service with seven million subscribers, was launched in 1999 to compete with video rental shops, letting subscribers order films and television shows by the Internet and sending them to the customers via the mail.
Netflix lets subscribers keep the DVDs as long as they want without charging late fees, and provides postage-paid return envelopes.
Last year the company began letting people stream "rented" movies or television shows for viewing on personal computers, but they kept caps on monthly usage until Monday's announcement.
"Unlimited has always been a very powerful selling point with our subscribers, and a large part of what set us apart in the marketplace," Netflix chief marketing officer Leslie Kilgore said in a written release.
"In talking with members about our streaming feature during the past year, it became clear that, as with DVDs, the idea of streaming unlimited movies and TV episodes on a PC resonated quite strongly."
Earlier this month Netflix and LG Electronics unveiled an alliance to create set-top boxes to stream movies directly to high-definition television sets from the Internet, bypassing personal computers.
LG said it expects to have the boxes to market in the second half of this year.
Apple meanwhile declined to reveal what chief executive Steve Jobs has in store for MacWorld on Tuesday.
Jobs traditionally uses the stage to debut Apple innovations, last year introducing the hit iPhone.
Apple innovations hinted at this year include an extremely compact Macintosh laptop computer and an improved version of Apple TV, a box that lets people wirelessly beam video, music, or photos from computers to televisions.
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