Reed Hastings on the Netflix blog:
It is clear that for many of our members two websites would make things more difficult, so we are going to keep Netflix as one place to go for streaming and DVDs.
This means no change: one website, one account, one password… in other words, no Qwikster.
Splitting the DVD by mail business from the streaming business makes perfect sense, but whether that split would have been better off embodied in two separately branded identities — Quikster for DVD by mail and Netflix for streaming — is debatable.
Clearly, consumers like me who subscribe to both services would have been inconvenienced with a broken experience by having to manage two distinct accounts. On the other hand, continuing to offer both services under the Netflix brand severely undermines the vision that Netflix is synonymous with streaming. Obfuscating identity is a slippery slope for any company, especially for a forward-thinking one in an industry so resistant to change.
As a huge fan of Reed Hastings and a satisfied Netflix user, I have to say I'm a bit disappointed with all the recent backtracking, waffling, and miscommunication. Consumers are always going to react negatively to change. Although I admire Hastings' candor and eagerness to please his customers, he shouldn't be so quick to admit that he messed up. Consumers should be made aware that the brunt of the blame belongs with a movie industry fearful of the future Netflix ushers.