Netflix Didn’t Even Kiss Me After They Screwed Me.....
Written: May 15 '03
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Netflix is a site that I swore I would never join. Nope. Not me. I have eight HBO channels, a whole library of VHS and DVD titles and three [yes three] video rental stores within walking distance of my home. Why would I ever want to join a site to rent something that I could get in ten minutes rather than two to three days? Two words, two very deceptive words … free trial. Before I joined the site I had some huge concerns – what happens if the DVD gets lost? What happens if it arrives damaged? What happens if I get the wrong DVD? Pull up a chair and sit a spell, this is going to take a while to get to the bottom of what I like to call The Netflix Mystery. Like it or not, Netflix is a company that is here to stay. They recently expanded their catalog as well as adding new shipping centers so the time to receive your order should be between 1 – 2 days regardless of where you are in the country. With shipping centers in Los Angeles, Washington DC, Boston, Denver, New York and Minneapolis [as well as other cities] getting your flix from Netflix should be a piece of cake.
The site offers you more than just the ability to rent DVD’s, there are also sections that give you information about unlocking special sections of the DVD [easter eggs], background information about the film and stars and recommendations from Netflix as well as other users. Even though I don’t really care for the Netflix service as a whole, the site is easy to get around, had a lot of information [in most cases] and allows you to thoroughly check out a film before you actually checkout. The site gives you enough information in most cases to feel out a selection to see if you will like it or not – but you know that eventually you are going to get a real stinker.
Site Design
As many other reviews have already said, the best way to get the feel of the site is to sit down and dig in because there are a lot of titles to look at and possibly add to your rental list. If you want to get the best of your membership you should try a little variety and don’t clump all the new releases or older titles together, this way you don’t have to worry about the new releases clogging up your list and you’ll always be ensured of a variety of new DVD’s in your mailbox. Finding what you want can be obtained several different ways, looking through the sections is a little time consuming but as a whole, it is one of the best ways to find groupings of movies like horror, drama, comedy etc. You can use the search engine to try and find titles but if you are like me, you’ll always have movies that you know like the back of your hand but can’t recall the complete or correct name. One part of the site that I spent a lot of time poking around was the music section. They offer biographies of groups like Blink 182, Korn and ‘N Sync, selected MTV broadcasts as well as concerts from Dave Matthews Band, Bruce Springsteen and Britney Spears – just to name a few. Of course they won’t have stuff like Danzig, Pantera: Vulgar Video or Type O Negative – for those selections you’ll have to go to a small Mom & Pop type rental store or order it from a music merchant and take a chance that you’ll like it. On a side note, most of the titles that are listed have the date next to them, this is helpful if you are looking for a concert from a certain era or a film that has been remade a few times. In my opinion, that really helps cut down on the amount of time you have to look for a title as well as almost eliminating the possibility of renting the wrong title.
What They Say & What I Say …
1. No late fees. 100% true. You’ll never be charged a late fee for keeping a movie out for a week, two weeks or even a month but you should know that if you keep a movie out for more than a month, you will be automatically charged another months subscription fee
2. Over 13,500 titles. I never sat down to count them so I have no idea if that number is accurate. Some sections are a little hard to get through, like the horror section that has everything scattered all over the place.
3. Free Shipping both ways in 1 – 3 days. 100% true. You get prepaid mailers with your DVD order and simply pop them back in the mailer, toss them in the mailbox and you are finished. Whether it gets there … that’s another story all together
4. No driving. No lines. No hassles Well, you won’t have to deal with lines, but you might have to wait for some titles to arrive, even if they are showing as ‘available’ at the site. As far as no hassles, that is hit or miss when you are dealing with some customer service people…
5. Always have up to 3 DVD’s at home This is something that they really need to clarify since they offer different membership levels and different prices. Just because you have the ability to have three DVD’s out at a time doesn’t mean that you will always have the chance to get them off your list and into your hands.
6. No commitments. Cancel anytime. You have the option to cancel whenever you want but you won’t be given any type of a prorated refund if you cancel in the middle of the month. Any DVD’s that are still out when you cancel your membership need to be returned ASAP to avoid having your credit card charged for them. Read the internet long enough and you’ll get the chance to read the horror stories of double billings and being billed after you cancel
Available Packages
Free Trial Membership: Just like the name implies, you get a two week free trial [credit card required for sign up] to try out the program and see if it something that you will be able to use, or more to the point, something that you will like. If you don’t like the service, cancel within the two week trial to avoid being billed for the standard service.
Light Renter Membership: Under this plan you can rent four DVD titles in a one month period. The fee for this is $13.95 and you can keep the movies out as long as you like. If you keep them over the 30 day time frame, your credit card will be charged another months subscription fee.
Standard Membership: This seems to be the most popular program at the site since it offers you the chance to have three DVD titles out at once, keep them as long as you want and return them at your convenience. You can rent as many as you like so the key is to watch them and return them quickly to receive the next film on your list. The fee for the standard membership is $19.95 billed to your credit card once a month.
Heavy Renter Membership: Just like the standard membership in most respects, there are two higher levels of rental power available. To have out five titles at once the fee is $29.99 and eight titles $39.99. This is great if you have roommates who are willing to split the cost of the monthly service or have a lot of movies that you want to watch.
Gift Subscription This is a great way to give the gift of DVD’s to someone and you can choose from one through six months or an entire year of the standard membership. Please make sure that you read all the terms and conditions before you purchase a plan for someone but most importantly, make sure that it is something that they will use on a regular basis. I’d hate to buy one of these for someone then see Blockbuster or Hollywood Video DVD cases laying on their coffee table.
With the exception of the gift subscription, you have the option to upgrade or downgrade your account at any time by visiting the “my account” portion of the site. Your credit or debit card is charged at the end of the billing cycle unless you call and cancel your subscription. If you give someone a gift subscription and they elect to cancel it, they will not receive any type of pre-rated refund on the remaining time they have available. Please make sure that this is something that the person will use and enjoy before you pay for it.
What They Offer
The best piece of advice I can give you in regards to getting to know the site is to grab a can of soda, a bag of chips and sit down and explore all the different areas that the site has to offer to you – the consumer. I was more than a little overwhelmed when I first started looking at the titles and sections so I’ll try to touch on the more obscure and off the beaten path ones that I came across. Most of these will be hard finds at your local Blockbuster or Hollywood video, but some small stores [the Mom & Pop type places] might have them]. Of course they have the staples like new releases, classics and the 80’s greats [Breakfast Club, St. Elmo’s Fire, 16 Candles etc] as well as a healthy independent film section. Star Trek, Twilight Zone and Dr. Who fans will be amazed at the number of episodes that are available at the site, this alone will make their subscription well worth it for a few months.
The Freak Fiasco
As I said in the introduction, I swore that I would never join the site due to the large library of film we have [both VHS and DVD] and the number of small video rental stores that are in my area. When I got the email saying that I could check out the site for a free two week trial I figured that I had nothing to lose. I pulled out the credit card, went to the site, filled out the membership form and started to poke around and see what I wanted to request first. It was my understanding that my credit card would not be billed during the two week trial and that if I did not call and cancel it, I would be charged the regular monthly fee [$19.95 plus tax]. I didn’t have a problem with this since I have one credit card that I only use for online purchases, I can access this credit card online 24 hours a day and see if a company has processed my order, posted a credit or any other activity. Less then two weeks after I had signed up for the free trial I noticed the monthly fee for the Netflix subscription on my account. I double checked the dates – 9 days – not fourteen. Since I knew that there was an ice cubes chance in hell that I would be able to get my money back I cut my losses, called to cancel the account then went in to the account, that I could still access after I cancelled it, and deleted it / cancelled it that way as well.
I only tried out the service a few times during my free trial and wasn’t really that impressed with the delivery time [2 – 3 days] or the condition that the DVD” were in when they arrived [smudged with fingerprints]. I will admit this, I ordered a movie for the boys that arrived with a small crack in it, I went in to a small panic thinking that I would have to pay for a replacement disc but when I called [and sat on hold] I was told to go online and fill out the customer service form and they would send out another one as soon as possible. While I would have liked to have had the situation taken care of while I was on the phone, I went to the form, filled it out with all the information and a replacement disc was in my mailbox in two days. Since they have a rental center in Los Angeles I sort of expected to get my selections in one day but in most cases it was two or three days. If I could get them in one day I’d probably have one of the heavy renters subscriptions and get caught up on all the horror and drama flicks that I have missed out on over the past few years. This would also allow the boys the chance to rent all the Stargate sets, science fiction films and documentaries on subjects that they are interested in.
Customer Service
Netflix, Inc
750 University Ave.
Los Gatos, CA 95032-7606
[888] 638-3549
[408] 399-3700
[408] 399-3737 – fax
Your best bet at getting good customer service is to use the online forms so that your request, complaint or question ends up in the right department. Trying to find a direct email address is almost impossible and with the number of members that the site has [which is growing by day] it makes sense that they would try to have everyone use the automated forms to handle the massive amount of emails they get. If all else fails, you can take your chances with the toll free number [listed above] and hope you get a sympathetic customer service representative to help you out. You can reach the main form by visiting this URL - www.netflix.com/ContactCustService, from here you can ask about DVD’s on your rental list, when a movie will be available, questions about gift subscriptions, how to change the status of your account and the miracle “other” selection that covers everything that isn’t listed on the form.
Payment Options
You can register with Netflix by using MasterCard, Visa, American Express or Discover Card. If you have a bank issued debit card that carries the MasterCard or Visa logo, you can also use this but you should be aware that your card will automatically be charged the renewal fee at the end of each billing cycle unless you cancel it before the next term starts. Since they need to establish an account with you in case you end your subscription and don’t return films, paying by check out money order for your service each month is not an option that they offer. If you don’t have a credit card but do have a bank account, you can ask if your financial institution offers MasterCard or Visa debit cards. If you are a paranoid person like myself you can purchase prepaid debit cards from various online banks or check out a site called Webcertificate that gives you a MasterCard account that you can deposit money in to or use when cashing out online reward programs.
The Bottom Line
Netflix is a great concept, I will admit that. They don’t rent adult films for obvious reasons – they can’t ensure that the person renting them is of legal age. The site says that you can’t be a member and rent from them unless you are 18 years of age or older. That’s part of the reason that they make you use a credit card to sign up – however – as I also mentioned – there are numerous ways to get around that little stipulation. No site will ever please everyone or stock every single title to make all the members happy. If you rent more than a few DVD’s a month and belong to Blockbuster or Hollywood Video, then Netflix might just be worth checking out- especially if you aren’t the most responsible person when it comes to returning them on time and get zapped with excessive late fees. With Netflix you return them when you want via the postage paid mailer.
Personally, I am too paranoid about getting DVD’s that don’t work or arrive broken, being billed even if I cancel the service and the possibility of lost DVD’s that I think I’ll stick with my local video store for now. If they could improve the way the DVD’s were sent or packaged that might eliminate a lot of the transit issues. Netflix isn’t perfect but it is getting better from what people have been saying. I might try them out down the road if they improve their delivery and tracking system but for right now I think I’ll be sticking with my local favorites and the occasional jaunt to the big name rental stores. If you are thinking about joining Netflix, try the two week trial to see if it is something that would be in your best interest to join on the month to month basis. Know your rights as a consumer but also be well aware of the rules of the site, when you will be billed and when you would need to cancel your subscription to avoid being charged for another month. Some people swear that Netflix is the greatest thing since sliced bread and disposable diapers – for me – I wasn’t impressed but you might have better luck if you are daring enough to give them a try.
As always, thanks for the visit!
^V^ Freak ^V^
© 2003 Freak369
Looking for other options?
Hollywood Video
Suncoast Video Online
Tower Records Online
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