Xbox Oblique 1 by catatronic

Netflix, the company that changed the way we think about watching DVDs is at it again.  Reports are stating that Netflix will begin a offering a stand alone streaming only service, possibly in 2010.  Currently, Netflix offers it’s 10 million subscribers the option of receiving DVDs in the mail, or streamed directly to their television for as little as $9.00 dollars a month.  Customers who choose streaming as their method of watching video, currently have significantly fewer choices than customers who use the tried and true DVD.  Netflix offers over 100,000 titles as DVD, but only 12,000 are available as a streaming video.  Video can be either watched on a PC or Mac, or streamed directly to your tv if you have an Xbox 360 or other “Netflix compatible device“.

If this plan takes off, and given Netflix’s track record it seems a distinct possibility it will, there are some questions for libraries to think about.

• How ready is the public for streaming video?
• How long will DVDs be around as a format?
• Should libraries begin loaning Blu-ray discs?  Or is Blu-ray a transitional format?
• Where does the library fit in the streaming video picture?

I’ll end by saying that the average consumer is probably more ready for this than they realize.  On demand movies, DVRs that allow us to watch television on our schedules, rather than  the networks’ are something most of us take for granted.  And if you’ve had an opportunity to hook up a high def tv in prep for the digital switchover it surely didn’t escape your attention that the cords connecting your television is a USB cord.  All of this makes me think that maybe we’ll all be streaming video into our homes a lot sooner than we realize.

By the way I’m more interested in your answers to the questions above, than talking to myself, please share your thoughts.

posting by jim