Hmm. Well that's not much of a fix.

I have 80 movies in my queue. I (or my wife) want to see them all. Taking them all in and out of the queue to get new movies doesn't seem very appealing.

It's probably best to just leave NetFlix behind. *sigh*
 

you should just create a second queue, since they let people split the queues, and just put all the new release in the new queue and keep the old one the same.
 

You could always just poke your eyes out...twice.
 

Another thing you can do is add the new release before it is due to be released and it will ship to you on monday a day before it releases
 

Well, not to be a noob, even tho this is about NF, i used Blockbuster for 2 months, while this, i had at times 3 movies, of which all where long waits. some times i got down to 1, and i would have to wait, or get other movies, which would send right away. again this is not NF. but the brite side of blockbuster online, my buddy says they now, (before they allowed 2 free in store rentals) still offer that plus 2 free used movies to keep. hey i buy used movies all the time
 

Hmmm. Considering that most new releases nowadays are junk, maybe you should consider adding some older or indie movies to your queue. I can make some excellent recommendations if you like.
 

The first question is, why do you have movies in your queue that you don't really care to watch? Doesn't seem to make much sense. The second is, doesn't this seem like the constant maintenance and monitoring that Netflix is supposed to allay by setting up the queue in the first place? Seems like quite a hassle, than just waiting for the movie while still catching some flix you've been meaning to catch up on. If you must see it...go rent it.
 

Netflix is so bad about this crap. I was doing good for some time becuase I would return a movie on Saturday so it would be processed early Monday and I would end up with my New Release picks, but now it seems they can't even get that right. I ended up going from three to one movie and am back to Hollywood video for new releases with the money I saved.

I will likely stop using Netflix anyway.
 

JT:
Because I have been there over a year and because I have been (although not lately) a heavy renter, new releases don't ever ship on Monday any more.

So they go to either "Shipping Tuesday" or "Long Wait" as soon as they are released.

It seems that potentially having fewer movies out (because of their ability to ship them) than what you're paying for is the trigger that moves you up.

acemaverick:
It's not that I don't want to see them. It is just that I want to see the new one more. So when you are hoping to see one thing and then you get another (and this happens week after week), it gets to be kind of a bummer.

I guess the interesting thing that this "trick" shows is that they are holding inventory (presumably for new customers) and showing some members "Long wait." Otherwise, how could they ship these movies immediately?
 

This sort of shows the bait and switch tactics Netflix unfortunately has adopted to keep new customers from cancelling right away. I used Netflix for a while and was always happy with the speed, but now that it is pretty mainstream I'm glad I cancelled.

Fiber at the curb is not too far off, so maybe iTunes or cable companies will capatilize on the potentially huge HD video-on-demand market.
 

I was thinking about subscribing to Netflix, but after reading your entry and all the posts, I believe I will just continue to run 3/4 miles over to Blockbuster with one of my 20% off coupons in hand on either Tuesday (new release day) or early friday of each week.

There are so many new tehnologies! One must choose carefully.
 

Easiest thing to do for you all is if you don't like what they do then don't use them. If you don't want to watch the movie then don't put it on your queue. duh It can't be easier than that. You can also move your movies around in your queue. Or you can always go back to blockbuster or hollywood video and do it that way.
peyton
 

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Peyton:
Thanks, I would never have thought of those great tips on my own. I'm truly in your debt.
 

I've been with Netflix for years and, yes, I have also tried Blockbuster for several months. Sometimes over a month or two a pattern seems to appear in their shipping practices, but I have decided it is coincidence - like weather trends.

I have been waiting for Madagascar since it came out. But They shipped The Corpse Bride and the new Zorro the day they released. I always place new movies and "long waits" at the top of my list. And frequently new releases are shipped to me the day they release.

I also hear frequent rumours that they delay shipments to reduce the number of movies you get if you are a rapid returner. I am a very rapid returner, almost always watching the movie the day it arrives and putting it in the mail the next day. Having watched the process for years, I have come to the conclusion that what we are seeing is random patterns. Keep in mind that they don't process on weekends (when have you ever gotten an email saying "xxxxx will ship Saturday"?) So on Monday they have all the returns that stacked up Saturday & Sunday to process. And holidays and when the flu decimates their workforce, there are more delays. And then there is the US Postal Service. I have returned 3 movies on the same day and had one arrive at Netflix the next day another a day or two later and the third a week to 10 days later. The same applies to shipments to me. I don't think NF has the time or intention of treating some customers differently than others.
 

I recently realized I was a victim of the Netflix throttle, and thought of the very same remedy you suggested...this morning, I cut down my 90-movie queue to just the top 5 I want to see. Crossing fingers that it works. If it doesn't, I might need to cancel my membership, which sucks because up until this throttling, I was a huge fan. Hopefully they'll wisen up that they're pissing off their loyal fan base in favor of catering to their new and less-frequently-renting customers.
 

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Good tip smorty71, but a bit time-intensive.

We've been pretty high-volume customers since we started 2 months ago, and Netflix didn't start slowing our shipments until this week (a grace period!?)

First, to the generous person who thinks maybe it's just rumors or "random patterns" (?) or the flu.... it's not. It's a Netflix written policy - as if any of us have read the "Terms of Use". Among other things, it states pretty clearly that "In determining priority for shipping and inventory allocation, we give priority to those members who receive the fewest DVDs through our service."

http://www.netflix.com/TermsOfUse

And to the people who think we are their best customers or their "loyal fan base", you couldn't be any more wrong. High volume viewers are their worst nightmare. Somewhere after about 11 DVDs a month (a guess), they start losing money. Nothing would give them greater glee than if we took our business to one of their competitors.

If you can find a better deal, you should take it. Just don't expect the folks at Netflix HQ to be badgering you to re-up.
 

I don't watch many "new releases" so being bumped to the end of the line was never really a problem for me. The problem appears when they intentionally send out movies a day later than they're supposed to. Any tips for beating that??
 

I had same problem with Netflix I now use Blockbuster (no problems yet), which has a $9.99 offer if you go through this Xbox website:

http://xbox360s.freepay.com/?r=29899665
 

I am unable to work for medical reasons and I have been a NF subscriber for several years and I am on the 3 movie plan, because of my ample free time, I watch movies as soon as they come in and have them out the next day, in order to get the most for my money. When I started with NF I could get over 20 movies a month, now 12 is the most I can get. On a side note, I thought I would try something different. My mailman came early one day, so I watched the movie and dropped it back in the mail, same day. It took six days for them to recognize the movie was returned. I thought it was lost in the mail, so after 5 days I listed it as missing, the next day they said they recieved it. I hear Blockbuster doesn't have the throttling policy, but I have heard about other problems with them them. Any thoughts?
 

I've been a netflix subscriber for only a few months, but from what I have seen, I never want to step foot in another Blockbuster, Family Video, Hollywood video, etc... The service is horrible, you have to show ID etc... and just making a special trip to return the movies is a drag.

I watch the movies usually the same day and send them right back. I upped to 2 at a time and now have two queues. I can get 11 a month on the one at a time plan.

I tried the Total Access, and find it really lacking compared to Netflix. It's just to bait you to come into the store where you can pay $3-$4 for a rental.
 

Ive tried your little trick, and yes it does work, but with one HUGE caveat. Breaks down like this for 3 rentals.

3rd choice - process two days after you get it ships that day

2nd choice, take two days to process4 days to ship

3rd choice take three days to process 4 days to ship.

To sum it up you're still waiting along time!!!
 

Yeah, unfortunately this didn't work for me...a week later and I still have no movies shipped. Every day it says it'll ship the next day. It hasn't. Bleh.
 

The whole reason I joined NF was to get new releases as soon as they came out. I wanted to avoid the hassle of going to the video store just to find nothing. But now I have to wait so long some times that's not even worth it.
 

I filed all the paperwork to opt out of the netflix mandatory lawsuit. So I can still sue them over their false advertising of 4 years ago. They are no longer throttling me. -th
 

BB is great. Noticed a little bit of throttling lately, but since I average 15 per month in the mail and can return them for free rentals at the store(this is when I usually get new releases), for an average of 30 movie. Been with them for over a year. How can I complain? Sure I want the most for my buck, but I don't want to put them out of busines.
 

I used to be throttled but not anymore. I joined in 2002 when Netflix was still advertising "unlimited DVDs". When the throttling lawsuit was filed I sent in all the paperwork to opt-out of the suit. As a result I can still sue Netflix at any time for false advertising. Netflix stopped their unlimited DVD claim in 2003/4. I am a 5 DVD member and get an average of 30 DVDs per month - EVERY month. -th
 

Broken TRUST is what ultimately will end Netflix. Here’s why:

You can accept that such a company might not have every disc available in every location every day. As a customer, you understand and can wait. You’ll trust they’re being straight with you and cut them slack.

However, it is disingenuous to report that a locally unavailable movie must be shipped from another location THE NEXT DAY. There is no reason it couldn’t be shipped THAT day. Combine the one day delay for shipping from the distant location, extra travel time, plus no weekend service and you’ll wait a week for your movie. This is throttling plain and simple. A cheap trick. If Netflix had good will towards you as a customer it would simply locally ship the next choice in your queue the day you originally requested it.

Once you figure out their disingenuous strategy in one part of your dealings with Netflix, you can’t TRUST any part of their operation.

Netflix smoothes over its fundamentally bad relationship with its customers with cheap prices. You might classify it as an abusive co-dependent relationship.

As soon as another company or technology comes along that doesn’t treat its customers neurotically, Netflix will go out of business. When customers are handled in underhanded ways, they GET IT. They’ll bolt at the first chance.
 

another suggestion:

say it's sunday night and you really want netflix to send out the new "tuesday" release on monday morning so it arrives on tuesday (the street date of the movie) but you have no more open slots on your "current checked out" queue

normally you would have to mail the movie back on sunday, ideally it would arrive at netflix on tuesday. they would ship out on wed, and it arrives to you on thursday.

one way to get around this is to report up to 2 of your movies as "already returned" on sunday night they will immediately ship out the new releases on monday & you'll have them on tuesday. then you mail out the movies you've already claimed as returned. (in other words your saying to netflix, I've shipped them back to you, go ahead and ship out the new movies BEFORE you actually recieve the old moview back a "cross-shipping" type arrangement)

the only downside I've found is that if you try to report more then 2 movies (for example all 5 if your on that plan) as missing, they will lock your account until some come back to them.. also this can only be done if you've had the original movie for longer then 4days or so.
 

Netflix's recent move to provide "unlimited" would have been the coolest thing ever---if it weren't a lie and a rip off.

That's right. After you watch your 17 hours of seamless streaming movies, it starts crashing your browser for you. So some folks are not actually GETTING the unlimited hours which they were promised.

Officially, they're on unlimited, technically however, Netflix takes ACTIVE measures to prevent it.

I have tracked this since the unlimited thing BEGAN.

Consistently, and every month, after 17 hrs of watching seamlessly... it won't allow any more watching and crashes browsers to prevent users from the promised "Unlimited".

People should be outraged. Netflix was fine before this, after this, I can't trust them anymore.