That could be a powerful offering if Amazon can boost the library a bit. $89 per year for Amazon Prime with 2 day shipping and streaming is a few bucks cheaper than a year of Netflix streaming only (7.99*12=95.88) and potentially much more valuable.
For someone who shops at Amazon a lot, only uses streaming a little and doesn't have a DVD add-on, this could be huge.
Although, when MP3s arrived at Amazon most people stuck with iTunes. Netflix might have enough brand recognition to prevent more than a handful from switching unless Amazon launches a serious campaign.
Edit: The other nifty part is Amazon offers video on demand for free with some DVD/Blu-ray purchases. Sending those along speedily plus instant watch also helps people choose Amazon over the local Target, Best Buy etc.
Agreed. I'm canceling my Netflix subscription the second Amazon increases their selection.
EDIT: And holy shit. A video player that works beautifully and I don't have to install anything. I get a nice big message about installing Silverlight when I browse Netflix with Chrome. Although after further experimentation there are a bunch of things that annoy me off the bat. First, pressing escape while in full screen stops the movie, instead of just exiting fullscreen. Also, exiting fullscreen appears to close GChat windows that I have popped out of my browser. Obviously still some kinks to work out :P
Note to other linux users, their video player works brilliantly in linux despite being flash. Waaay better than youtube's fullscreen even. After fullscreening it, I can't even tell it's not mplayer. Very obviously an improvement from the shit netflix situation ;)
Of course your milage may vary, but you can test it out with a free clip first.
For someone who shops at Amazon a lot, only uses streaming a little and doesn't have a DVD add-on, this could be huge.
Although, when MP3s arrived at Amazon most people stuck with iTunes. Netflix might have enough brand recognition to prevent more than a handful from switching unless Amazon launches a serious campaign.
Edit: The other nifty part is Amazon offers video on demand for free with some DVD/Blu-ray purchases. Sending those along speedily plus instant watch also helps people choose Amazon over the local Target, Best Buy etc.