Netflix Support Discussion Thread

[Catmambo]

Hi

Just thought I would offer a bit of clarity around the Netflix discussion threads that keep popping up.

• Is Netflix coming to Sony devices?

Hopefully, no date confirmed as yet, but as you'd expect, we'd like to launch it on Sony Entertainment Network/BRAVIA Internet Video as soon as we can.

• Which devices will it be compatible with and will it be backported?

Not clear yet. We look to backport all services to as many devices as possible, but its not always technical possible to do. Whilst it is available on US devices at present, its not yet clear if Netflix would want to re-use the old interface or launch with a new interface, which makes things much harder to backport.

Feel free to ask any questions and I'll do my best to answer below - mindful there are areas I cannot discuss with NDA's in place etc..

Thanks

Message was edited by: Catmambo

Message was edited by: Catmambo

[dearg1]

So is that it then ? Discussion over, Sony don't give a toss about cutomers once money has changed hands and Netflix trying to be overly clever with new DRM policies that are locking out potential new customers just as they are trying to establish themselves outside The States , very clever indeed , well if they think that I am going to scream on a gadget with a tiny screen while I have lots of expensive AV equipment lying idle in a very comfortable sitting room they are seriously deluded . So back to Blurays/DVD's for me in all their glory (they are also getting cheaper by the day ) and both Sony and Netflix can take a hike .

Then again if I want to do some streaming on my 3  "internet enabled " Sony Bluray players I suppose I can thank them for at least enabling my " imagine the internet on your tv" Bluray player with Lovefilm to catch a few movies............Oh then again I live in Ireland so Billabong Golf for me

Roll on Apple TV

[stumpybloke]

Couldnt agree more...i have already cancelled my Netflix account...like you i wont be watching on an iphone.  Sony and Netflix are even more arrogant and disrespectful than I originally thought.

I would just say however, thanks to Catmambo for keeping us up to date...pity the rest of Sony and Netflix dont share his attitude!

Message was edited by: stumpybloke

Message was edited by: stumpybloke

[glaspole]

I have a 2011 Bravia SmartTV.

I've been waiting for ages for Netflix - since it was launched in the UK.

I've been using UK Netflix on my laptop connected to my TV via HDMI. SD content was ok.

I bought a year's subscription to unblock.us so I could access the US content and HD on Netflix. Still couldnt get the Netflix app to work on the Bravia, and HD via a laptop was really choppy - not very good.

I now have a US Netflix acount at $7.99/month and it works brilliantly. Loads of great HD content. As soon as I activated my US account it worked immediately on the Bravia. No stuttering at all, load times almost instant, Great picture quality.

Its probably costing me about £10/month all together but it's working very well and unless I get sick of the content I'm going to keep it.

You also get other services that work well with unblock.us DNS and Bravia. Better than the stock streaming apps. I have lost BBC iPlayer - but I have a V+ box too so can access that content easily.

I have read the reasons why the app can't be bakported for the UK DRM requirements, but it works very well for US content - is the DRM issue that different for the UK? The Bravia hardware can definitely cope with Netflix streaming.

A useful addition would be access to Closed Captions/Subtitles. That's the only missing thing for me.

[Catmambo]

Yes the US and UK services use different DRM solutions unfortunately. As you have seen, the device can in itself cope perfectly well with the content itself. Studios are becomming a lot stricter with their DRM requirements.

Thanks

[hawk50]

Hi Catmambo,

thanks for being open & honest throughout this discussion, trying to answer the key questions from many disappointed Sony / Netflix UK customers.   Now the discussion has died down, I hope you will be able to respond on the following open points which I asked previously:

- Please can you share the link to this discussion with Netflix UK.  I would love to see their response.  Maybe they would consider an alternative solution if they saw the number of disappointed customers.

- Please update us on the launch timings & backward compatibility for ITV Player, 4oD & Sky's Now TV.

Many thanks.

[Catmambo]

Hi

Netflix were already aware of consumer demand and the importance of backporting which is why it was escalated on both sides to try and find a solution. Unfortunately there is nothing that can be done about this feature now and resource has moved onto other areas and service development.

I'm afraid I can't comment on the current status of specific discussions with broadcasters, but we do have 2 if not 3 services going live this month, of which two will be backported to all current devices. I'll post the details on the boards when the press releases go out..

Thanks

[alpeter30]

Well, found it at last - this forum - with information about Netflix.

Not what I wanted to hear, really, having bought a 2011 Sony bluray player a few months ago.

An Alternative Future Scenario:

--------------------------------------------

Sony and Netflix worry more about commercial issues rather than getting satisfaction from complex technological advance.

I link up my bluray player to Netflix.

I become a long-term customer of Netflix.

I continue to be loyal to Sony for new hardware.

The Actual Future Scenario:

-----------------------------------------

Sony and Netflix are proud of their new technology and incorrectly assume everyone will upgrade immediately.

I cannot link up to Netflix, so I stay with Lovefilm discs in the post and some Lovefilm streaming.

Netflix do not get my custom for possibly many years (well done Netflix).

When I eventually buy a new player, it won't be Sony (well done Sony).

---

For Sony it's the last straw. I was there when Sony trashed their D-800 freeview tuner with one final OTA firmware update. This was the BEST tuner you could buy to enable a TV to receive Freeview when it all started. But this last update disabled the one week program Guide from updating - it only updated by powering down the unit, and then of course a week later the Guide would be empty again. Despite about a thousand furious customers on the forums, Sony did nothing about it. Funny thing, at the time, Sony was the only piece of kit I trusted to leave on automatic OTA update. Everything else was on manual only, so I could check out how other people were affected first.

So, I am already not confident that Sony care that much about their customers once they have had the money.

But the cake goes to Netflix for blind fiscal stupidity. They have effectively pressed the reset button and will not get any (TV sofa-watching) Sony custom until their 2012 hardware starts coming out. The existing HUGE base of Sony equipment will lay silent. I can imagine the inside of Netflix Towers - full of technical bods without a single accountant in sight (who would have a fit at the loss of opportunity).

Rant, rave...

[alpeter30]

... To put it shortly:

It looks like the technical solution was already decided on and made a constraint. No amount of jiggery-pokery with specifications was able to resolve the issue of Sony-Netflix compatibility. The starting point should have been the commercial strategy to enable existing SOny hardware to Netflix.

[mobrown76]

I’m gutted I just bought a new Sony KDL-40NX723 and the person in the shop that worked for Sony made me believe it supported Netflix, had I known it didn't I would have bought the SAMSUNG that supports it instead. I'll seriously look and see if I can send it back, cause the reason I bought the TV was to watch Internet content and if it can't support the latest it is not worth it. Funny thing is this is my first time buying a Sony, if I don't send this one back be sure I won't be buying another one.

[Catmambo]

Sorry to hear about your experience - could you share some more details of the store where you purchased it from so we can address this incorrect information being handed out? Feel free to PM me if you need any further assistance.

Thanks