What Netflix is missing here is that consumers are buying content; not DVD-by-mail; not streaming service. Some customers aren't streaming service candidates because they don't have the home networking infrastructure to make it work. Some customers would prefer to be streaming-only customers, but they can't get the content they want through the streaming service alone. Combining these two services has generated the mass market appeal that Netflix has capitalized on.

We (my household) are about to embark on a study of all the content we've watched through Netflix in the last year. I'm going to compile a list of every movie we've watched to see which titles are available streaming, and which are available only on DVD. I'm even going to give Netflix the benefit of using their streaming catalog as it exists today, rather than trying to back-date it (not sure I could do that if I tried). I have a suspision that the majority of the content we watch is available on DVD-by-mail only.

If that turns out to be the case, I have an important message for Netflix: If you want me to be your customer, it is your responsibility to deliver the content I want. Don't force me to choose between two arbitrary delivery mechanisms for your own reasons. I understand that Netflix has their own internal business agenda, but let's not forget who pays the bill each month.