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As The New York Times unveiled an ingenious interactive feature this weekend that highlighted Netflix’s reach and influence, Netflix itself revealed that it has entered into a pact with Warner Bros. to restrict how soon consumers can rent the company’s movies on the service.
Under the new deal, which has puzzled some observers, Netflix will withhold Warner Bros.’ movies for 28 days upon their initial release. The studio believes the move will bolster flagging DVD sales, while Netflix in return will get to dig deeper into the Warner Bros. vault for its Watch Instantly service, which has become a central part of its brand.
Blockbuster and other in-store distributors will be unaffected, though that possibility is still on the table in the future.
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When is this going into effect? It seems very strange, except that I can understand that Netflix would want to have more movies available to watch online. The selection of online movies is a little weak.
thank you warner brothers for dissipating the generosity i sometimes extend by waiting for the release on netflix instead of just downloading it. i always thought rapidshare deserved more of my service anyways.
if someone is already not going to purchase a dvd to begin with what is the point in making them wait... it only increases the chances of them seeking out a method that is a no-win circumstance for everyone (except maybe google as people will just go watch 11 part videos of the movie on youtube).