Netflix reverses DVD-only split

Netflix, in blog post from CEO Reed Hastings, announced a halt to its plan to separate its streaming and DVD subscription services.  After three weeks of negative reaction from subscribers, and a 25% drop in its stock price, Netflix shelved its Qwikster plans  And in doing so perhaps avoided the biggest marketing blunder since New Coke. 
What's not being changed, however, are the new pricing plans announced over the summer - plans that would reflect a 60% price increase for about half of Netflix subscribers.  Dropping the plan to split may not be enough to stop the continuing decline, particularly as other streaming and DVD rental services bulk up their offerings.

Source -  Qwikster is Gonester: Netflix Kills Its DVD-Only Business Before Launch  AllThingsD

Netflix to split streaming, DVD services

Netflix has announced that it will be splitting its DVD rental side from the streaming portion of the business.

In a few weeks, the DVD-by-mail service will be rebranded as "Qwikster" (supposedly to emphasize the quick delivery system), and add a video games upgrade option similar to its current Bluray disc upgrade.  The press announcement indicated that there are plans for continued service improvements on the rental side.  Netflix will remain as the name of the streaming service.

The split will lead to separate websites for the two services, and separate billing, although the announcement indicates that subscribers to both will find that the two charges will be no higher than their current subscription prices (at least for now).

Source:  An Explanation and Some Reflextions, Netflix blog