Netflix and Microsoft: A Perfect Marriage or Mistake in the Making?
There have been a lot of rumors recently about a possible collaboration between Netflix and Microsoft. Specifically, the rumors hint at the introduction of a service that would allow Netflix customers to download movies to their televisions through their Xbox 360 “Xbox Live” connection. The speculation has largely been fueled by a survey that was supposedly sent out by Netflix to some of its customers asking “If as part of your Netflix membership you could instantly watch movies and TV episodes on your TV with your Xbox 360, how likely would you/anyone in your household be to do that?”
For the record, no official announcement has been made by Microsoft or Netflix as of this writing. Also, though I am a loyal Netflix customer myself, I was never personally contacted by Netflix with this survey question. However, screenshots of the survey abound on the web, so speculation is running wild. Time will tell how this all plays out, but in the meantime it might be fun to speculate how this type of thinking might affect the average media consumer. How would this play into Microsoft and Netflix’s overall strategies? Would this be a good thing for the consumer?
Microsoft’s Strategy
Since its inception, Microsoft has been firmly linked with all things PC. Their core business has been centered on PC operating systems, databases, productivity tools, software development tools, etc. But if their product releases over the past few years are any indication, Microsoft isn’t content to remain confined to the PC realm. Recent Microsoft products include the Xbox and Xbox 360 game consoles, the Zune MP3 player, the Sync phone and music system for cars, and the MSN TV home media center. What do these products have in common? None of them are PC-based and all of them focus on multimedia entertainment. Having conquered the home office, Microsoft apparently wants to conquer our living rooms next.
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