Netflix

Netflix will get "social features" that will allow users to share their viewed movies online, according to a report by Talking Points Memo.

Netflix has long wanted users to link their video accounts with Facebook and other social networks, but has been prevented from doing so because of the Video Privacy Protection Act, which bars company from disclosing information such as video rentals. An amendment to that law passed on Friday allows digital, as opposed to written, permission from users and thus makes it easier for Netflix to move forward with its social plans.

CNET contacted Netflix for … Read more

Netflix's video streaming service suffered a Christmas Eve outage on "many but not all devices" across the Americas, according to the company.

The outage continued into Christmas morning for some customers. The company tweeted on its Netflix US account at 8:45 a.m. PT today that the service was "back to normal streaming levels."

Netflix first started responding to tweets about disrupted service before 1 p.m. PT yesterday. About three hours later, Netflix offered an apology on its main Twitter account.

"We're sorry for the Christmas Eve outage. Terrible timing! Engineers … Read more

We're down to the wire, just one day to go until the ho-ho-holiday. If you're a procrastinator like me, you might be scrambling to find a last-minute gift for, say, your favorite uncle/mail carrier/blogger.

No problem: all you need is your computer and, if you want something tangible you can put under the tree, a printer. The following stores let you print or e-mail gift certificates for fast, easy, and downright thoughtful giving.

Amazon.com On any Amazon page, click the Gift Cards link, then choose Digital or Print. Amazon offers a wealth of options in … Read more

Fun, fun, fun!

That's what digital movies, music, and books are supposed to be about. But for the people who create and sell the stuff, it's been all crumbs, crumbs, crumbs.

The past year was another tough one for the sale of entertainment media on the Web. The irony is that as more entertainment fare is sold online, the less profitable the businesses become.

Few, if any, online music services are profitable. In Web movie distribution, download sales are dismal. Even Netflix, the Web's top video rental service, saw a slow down in the rate it added … Read more

The U.S. Senate has approved legislation to amend a 1988 law that would make it easier for people to share their video-viewing habits online should the Netflix-backed bill win President Obama's signature.

The Senate approved revisions this evening to the Video Privacy Protection Act to allow video rental companies to obtain consent from customers in order to share information about their viewing preferences on social networks. The 24-year-old law was enacted after a newspaper printed the video rental history of Judge Robert H. Bork during his Supreme Court nomination hearings.

Bork died yesterday at age 85, a day … Read more

Redbox said the streaming portion of its Redbox Instant video service, offered in a partnership with Verizon, will cost $6 a month, undercutting key rival Netflix.

The company's primary offering is an $8 a month plan that includes the unlimited video streaming and four one-night credits for DVDs at local kiosks. A plan that includes Blu-Ray discs costs $9 a month, according to a representative for Redbox.

But by pricing its streaming-only service at $6 -- $2 less than Netflix's comparable offer -- RedBox Instant looks to be getting aggressive in taking a chunk out of the paid … Read more

Internet service provider (ISP) performance is notoriously hard to quantify, but there's at least one company that has tons of real-world data: Netflix.

The streaming-video king released a report this morning ranking 21 major U.S. ISPs based on real-world streaming performance. Google Fiber came in the lead by quite at bit, with an average of 2.55 Mbps in November, with the next closest competitor (Verizon FiOS) coming in at 2.19 Mbps. Unsurprisingly, DSL services came in behind all the major cable/fiber services, with the best performer averaging just 1.42 Mbps in November. The best … Read more

The luster came off Netflix in 2011. A bungled price increase and an aborted attempt to spin off DVD operations made the company appear poorly managed. That triggered an 18-month-long slide in the company's stock, and Netflix looked ripe for an acquisition. But the Web's top video-rental service is leaving 2012 on a high note. In November, the company implemented a "poison pill," provisions designed to make acquiring the company very expensive, and girded itself against a possible hostile takeover attempt from corporate raider Carl Icahn.

Then, earlier this month, Netflix leaders pulled off a whopper … Read more

Reed Hastings can't catch a break. The Netflix CEO started 2012 trying to repair the damage from price-hike mistakes he'd made in 2011 and ended the year with an investigation notice from the SEC, which apparently did not like the way he announced some company news on Facebook and on a blog. There was good news, too. Netflix landed a coveted deal to stream Disney-owned content and the total number of streams served by Netflix continued to grow.

Nonetheless, the year reminded Silicon Valley that even the best of executives can make blunders that take months or even … Read more