Just late last week Netflix, a 10 million subscriber strong movie rental and digital streaming empire in the US, announced its very first international move… to Canada! Finally our friendly neighbor to the north (and home of the TV Addict himself) will be able to bask in the greatness that is unlimited movies and TV shows as far as the eye can see.
Well… almost anyway.
Only half of Netflix’s service offering is making its way north. Customers will be able to access and stream movies and TV with Netflix Instant watch, but will not be able to get DVDs and Blu-Ray discs by mail. If it were any other company I’d say that sucks, but Netflix’s online offering is only getting better and better. It’s hardly “everything,” but it’s better than nothing. It’s also better than Hulu, which remains exclusive to the US.
Of course, there’s no better way to celebrate the coming of unlimited TV and movies over the Internet than by getting a note from your Internet Service Provider (Your ‘ISP,’ being the real power in the digital age) letting you know that your monthly data allowance is being cut. Just days after Netflix announced their new streaming service, Canada’s largest ISP, Rogers, reacted by adjusting the monthly cap on their two most popular data plans. No other ISP has made changes as far as I’ve seen (yet), but where Rogers goes others are sure to follow. Nothing like getting less for more, eh?
In the end, I really am happy for movie and TV lovers of the North, but it’s coming at a price greater than a simple bump in your data plan. You see, I can no longer get in my regular “if you only had Netflix” jabs every time I talk to Daniel, which (admittedly) has been a cruel pleasure of mine. At least I still have the DVD and Blu-Ray discs I get in the mail to hold over his head… for now, anyway.
Satisfy your inner geek while fueling your TV addiction… TV Tech Fix is a column by Matt Whitlock, editor of the TechLore.com Consumer Electronics Community (plus several other gadget-focused community websites), and lover of both technology and TV. In this column, he’ll cover a wide variety of tech topics aimed squarely at the TV addicts of the world – from tips and tricks to help you better your TV experience, to gear recommendations, to the impact technology is having on the TV shows we love.
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