Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Netflix Responds To Bandwidth Caps

I've enjoyed access to Netflix since it came to Canada, regularly supplementing my video intake with a combination of rented and purchased DVD's/BluRay and content available on NetFlix.

I can easily watch Netflix movies on my iPhone, computer or on my television via a wireless connection through my Wii. And I've done all three.  (That being said, I likely read 3 times more books in a year than watch movies - but it doesn't mean I don't enjoy watching movies, nor having the convenience of being able to stream it at a time and place that's convenient to me)


Of course, the titles available on Netflix in Canada have initially been limited. As evidenced in some recent press releases, that is about to change. Iron Man 2, for example, is one of a line-up of Paramount titles that now show up as available to Canadian Netflix subscribers. (Again, given my limited movie viewing, there are a lot of older movies that I haven't seen and was able to watch via Netflix - I've also enjoyed going back and watching some of the old television programs available - like the original Battlestar Galactica from the 1970's)


And in response to bandwidth concerns (ie caps imposed by providers in Canada), I received the following message in my inbox yesterday from Netflix.


You can now control the settings with which you watch anything on Netflix. You now have the choice between Good Quality (up to 0.3 GB per hour), Better Quality (up to 0.7 GB per hour) and Best Quality (up to 1 GB per hour or up to 2.3 GB per hour for HD)

So, using the big screen TV, you might want a higher resolution and larger bandwidth. Using a smaller screen like the one on my iPhone, you might be fine with the lowest quality setting. Nice choice to have and it's something you can change on the fly.

Nice.

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