Netflix continues to hone its focus on offering streaming videos, on Monday removing the "Add to Video Queue" option from streaming devices like smartphones, tablets, and boxes like Roku and Boxee.
In a blog posting, the company said it made the move so it could "concentrate on offering you the titles that are available to watch instantly." Director of product management Jamie Odell said that keeping the option to add DVDs for delivery through the mail on streaming devices "ties up resources that are better used to improve the overall streaming functionality." The company said most customers use the Netflix web site to order DVDs, saying the change won't impact that function.
Netflix in November launched an all-streaming option in the U.S. for subscribers who weren't interested in receiving DVDs though the mail. It came on the heels of a similar move the company made in Canada, the first international market in which the company is operating. The move there has been so successful that Netflix said it is now looking for other international markets to expand into in 2011.
During the company's Q3 earnings call in October, CEO Reed Hastings said the company planned to focus its efforts on building the streaming side of its business.
"Q3 represents our fourth consecutive quarter of more than one million net subscriber additions," he said. "This growth is clearly driven by the strength of our streaming offering. In fact, by every measure, we are now primarily a streaming company that also offers DVD-by-mail." Netflix in Q3 said it has nearly 17 million subscribers, some 66 percent of whom watched at least 15 minutes of streaming video from Netflix during the quarter.
For more:
- see this blog post
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