Netflix is the undisputed leader among online DVD rental services. They have shipped over one billion DVDs since they opened their doors and currently serve over 10 million subscribers. With a selection of over 100,000 DVDs, everyone is bound to find something that they want to watch. While their service is all-around excellent, we found a few shortcomings in terms of what they have to offer. Namely, their help and support options aren’t as complete as what we should see from an industry leader and they were missing some things in terms of the information they provide about each of their movies. Other than that, you’re going to have a hard time finding mistakes with this online DVD rental service that would make you think anything other than “I’ve got to sign-up today.”
Membership Features: 
For the low price of $8.99, you can sign on with the best online DVD rental service out there, Netflix. You get to have only one DVD out at a time, but there are no late fees and you get your DVD within one business day. Those of us who want our movies right away can go with the streaming video option. All you have to do is attach your computer or TV to a Netflix-ready device and it will be ready for you to start streaming your favorite movies. This is the ideal approach for those of us who might lose the DVDs we receive or forget to put them in the mail after a considerable amount of time. If you’re not sure if Netflix is the right online DVD rental service for you, you can try their service for free for 14 days. Members who no longer want to be part of the Netflix family can cancel their membership at anytime.
Movie Information:
Netflix doesn’t perform as admirably with the information they provide about each movie in their selection. When you go to the movie page, you will see a synopsis of what the movie is all about, cast members, the director, the genre the movie fits into, the format you will be able to get the movie in, the language the movie is in and the language of the movie’s subtitles. You will also find a rating at the bottom of each page. These pages are rather small and don’t provide enough information to make the movies appetizing. For one thing, they don’t even tell you how long each movie is. Each one is a brief summary that falls short in terms of making people want to see the movie their looking at.
Search Capabilities:
We were also disappointed with Netflix’s search capabilities. You’re only able to search by movie or TV show title, cast members and directors. There isn’t even an advanced search option that gives you the ability to cast a wider net in your search. We would like to see this part of their website expanded because customers are going to want to find a way to narrow down the list of 100,000 movies to the short list of the movies they want to see. It’s easier to figure out which movie is going to interest you if you have more options for how you’re going to narrow down this list.
Genre Availability:
Netflix has a lengthy list of genres to offer with the exception of Cult, which encompasses all of the movies that popular culture defines as being “cult classics.” We understand that they probably took the movies that would have gone into that category and put them in all of the other categories. Since a lot of movies are referred to as cult classics these days, it’s hard to make a distinction. They still succeed in offering everything from action & adventure to thrillers and everywhere in between. It’s one thing to have a repetitive collection of movies that spans a sparse amount of genres; it’s another to have something for every possible taste out there.
Help/Support:
Netflix has a good frequently asked questions section and telephone support service, but they’re missing email and live chat support options. Live chat is the most glaring exclusion because it provides users with the most immediate contact with customer service representatives that they wouldn’t otherwise get with a telephone support hotline. We would like to see Netflix expand their options in this area to meet the preferences of every user. Having only two help and support options is a narrow approach that’s unlikely to meet the needs of all users.
Summary:
Netflix is a great online DVD rental service that has very minor weaknesses. They remain at the forefront of the industry and the distance between them and the next company in line grows by the day. It’s hard to imagine any online DVD rental service overtaking them in the near future. They’re here to stay and we recommend them as the right company for meeting your online DVD rental needs.
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