It seems that Xbox owners won't be the only die-hard gamers streaming movies from Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX).
Tech blog Engadget posted a survey that is presumably going around to Sony (NYSE:SNE) PS3 owners, gauging their interest in streaming movies through their consoles as active Netflix subscribers. A similar query went out last week to Nintendo (OTC BB: NTDOY.PK) Wii players.
Users would apparently pay between $3 and $10 for a one-time disc that would need to be inserted in the console to stream the digital video, unlike Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) box, which works with Netflix right away.
The discrepancy in pricing is one reason to be wary of the rumor, as even gamer blog Joystiq ran a screenshot last week of the $9.99 price, but if you click on it to get the original capture, its price is actually just $2.99. Someone is apparently having a little fun with this. It happens this time of year.
However, it's probably inevitable at this point. Gizmodo ran an Xbox survey in February 2008. It was made official five months later.
Microsoft has always been a good fit with Netflix, as CEO Reed Hastings sits on Microsoft's board of directors. However, it's also clear that Netflix wants to stream its growing library of digital content -- 12,000 titles and counting -- through as many home theater appliances as possible. Deals with TiVo (NASDAQ:TIVO) and a few Blu-ray manufacturers are solid set-top solutions, but Netflix should reach out to the even larger audiences who have Web-tethered PS3 and Wii consoles connected to their televisions.
Netflix's playing nice on the PS3 would also be the perfect olive branch after last year's fallout, when Sony began to pull the licensing of movie titles available through Netflix's online streaming service for Xbox users.
Just as rival digital services offered by Blockbuster (NYSE:BBI), Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN), and Netflix can coexist on a TiVo, it follows that one service can thrive across all three video game consoles.
It's a win-win-lose situation. Netflix wins because it is able to reach out to wider audiences. The console makers win as their hardware becomes more valuable. The losers? You have to feel sorry for cable and satellite television providers, which grow less necessary with every step forward in digital convergence.
Some items with immediate availability on your reading queue:
- Netflix has beaten Wall Street profit expectations in six of the past seven quarters.
- Netflix has kept prices in check, beyond charging a dollar more for Blu-ray access.
- Maybe this is the opportunity that you've been waiting for.
