Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) will now be offering about 2,500 movies from the Starz movie channel as streaming video from its website. As Netflix continues to dabble heavily into internet-delivered content to complement its DVD rental business, the company really has taken the lead on ensuring it builds its brand to deliver content through whatever means. Once the DVD becomes obsolete (and it will), Netflix's positioning will put it in front once again to give its customer base content through whatever means.Netflix's "Watch Now" selection of immediate content has grown in recent months, but regular customer complaints about lack of selection have streamed in at the same time. This partnership with Starz should change that a bit. Right off the bat, Starz's "Starz Play" lineup will contain hits like No Country for Old Men, Superbad and other recent hits. Can Netflix convince studios to release movies at the start of or during theatrical release? That would be a major coup -- but that's quite a paradigm shift for the movie studio industry as well.
All the new Starz content will be available at no cost to current Netflix subscribers as well -- which is a major selling point if I've ever seen one. The more partnerships Netflix can forge with device manufacturers, gaming console leaders and content providers, the better. And, it may just keep giving Blockbuster executives fits as well, while Netflix CEO Reed Hastings sighs in relief.
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