Then as films get farther and farther from their release windows, they turn up on HBO or Netflix streaming, etc. It's just a smaller niche for me between wanting to see it at release and not caring when I get around to watching it.

Since Netflix added streaming it's essentially taken the place of basic cable for me (rather than replacing Blockbuster). With basic cable you can't always count on something being on at a given time but you can usually skim through the options and find something enjoyable. That's how I am with Netflix. The only difference is that Netflix costs $10/mo whereas basic cable costs $50+.

I like the fact that a company is managing to compete with cable networks without actually being a (traditional) cable network. Their shows may not always beat the best of HBO but they sure as hell beat USA, TBS, and the long list of "random shows and movies" cable channels.

Presumably because it is becoming a smaller and smaller part of their business. That's the reason they wanted to spin it off as Quikster. DVD rental also isn't available on the subscription package that most users have.