What does this mean for you Netflix subscribers?  Well, it partially explains my observation in my previous article – Netflix Popular New Releases – Not So Much!  Let’s get more specific than that though.

I hadn’t heard about the above deal, so I put The Twilight Saga: New Moon in my Netflix queue on the week it released (March 20, 2010).  Take a look at my queue for how this and other recent requests are listed:

Hmm, it doesn’t say that they don’t actually have it yet, does it?  I suppose many people don’t realize the big decrease in value that has come to Netflix and just think they are one of the unlucky few who aren’t getting it first. 

I think it is misleading, to say the least.  Frankly, why else do we pay the monthly fee if not to view recently released DVDs? 

So, what can you do if you want to view one of these *newly released* DVDs ?  You have lots of options, all of which happen to make the studios more money:

• It is available “on demand” from Comcast for just $5.99
• Buy it online for about $20 (Wal-mart has it for $17 + tax + $2 shipping, for example)
• Buy it now! on ebay.com for about $10.

I was a pretty early customer of Netflix and I love some of the innovations they have made.  I love their “watch instantly” option and I’ve watched several TV series completely online via Xbox Live.  However, I see little reason to keep paying for “3 at a time” DVDs when I can’t get the latest and greatest.   If I wait 28 days, I can buy the video on ebay.com for around $5 – so I could buy 3 per month instead of having a Netflix subscription.

I am certainly going to downsize my account.  I’ll probably change to the $8.99 option for now, so I can keep the online TV shows on demand, but I’m definitely going to start looking at other streaming options, because, from my point-of-view, the online streaming videos is all I’m using Netflix for at this point.

I am happy to report an excellent addition to the restaurant choices on Snoqualmie Ridge – Brunello Ristorante Italiano – or Brunello’s, as I’ve frequently heard it in the past few weeks.  We’ve now eaten at Brunello’s three times as a family, so I am comfortable giving my complete endorsement to this fabulous Italian restaurant.  The only downside is that the experience is so enjoyable, reservations may become a “must” if you want to have dinner there.

Personal Service

During each of our visits, we were greeted at the door by the owner and given a personal welcome, and each interaction with the staff was equally friendly and helpful.  Upon our first visit, I asked for recommendations and ended up ordering, to my delight, the Gnocchi.  To be honest, I’ve ordered it twice again when we dined there again.  On our most recent visit, we had a small wait, but the owner took us in hand and offered a glass of wine – on the house – during our wait.  I am sure that it is this sort of personal touch that will ensure that Brunello Ristorante Italiano will become a landmark restaurant destination for the area.

Excellent Food (and Wine) at Reasonable Prices

I’ve already confessed that I’ve only had the Gnocchi (with a delicious meat sauce!), but Jacki and the kids have each had other dishes and we are unanimous in our opinion that the food is excellent and worth many happy return (visits).  On my first visit, I was also pleased to see a flight of wines on the menu that gave me the opportunity to sample three of the wines served.  I enjoyed all three, though in subsequent visits, I’ve been very happy with my standard order of Pinot Grigio to go with my Gnocchi.

Location and Directions

Brunello’s is located right at the end of Center Blvd in “downtown” Snoqualmie Ridge, at the intersection of Ridge St, just across from the tennis courts next to Cascade View Elementary School.  If you don’t know where that is, here are the one-click directions.

It is not often that my profession gets covered in People Magazine, but it has finally happened as MTV “star” Spencer Pratt, of The Hills, has announced that he taking a break from TV to fight cybercrime.

Yes, in a People Magazine exclusive, Pratt says:

"Upon learning of President Obama’s declaration that the ‘cyber threat is one of the most serious economic and national security challenges we face as a nation,’ I have decided to refocus my energy and devote my full resources to helping America face this and other unprecedented challenges," he says.
"My new mission is this: To do my part in maintaining the technological superiority of the U.S. military and prevent emerging technologies from threatening our nation’s security.
"With that being said, I am saddened to take this break from filming MTV’s The Hills. At this time, however I feel I would not be honoring my country or myself if I were to continue this endeavor when I have the opportunity and the ability to assist our nation against these prevalent threats."

In vaguely semi-related, story, Spencer’s wife, Heidi Montag has announced that (a) her husband Spencer is no longer her manager and (b) her new manager is her psychic.

Spencer, welcome to the trenches.  I’m sure you’ll bring a new level of celebrity to the fight against cybercrime!

We’ve been Netflix subscribers for a few years now and I’ve generally been happy with it, but over time, I’ve noticed something that has become a pet peeve.  Popular New Releases,  a page you can browse for potential DVDs to add to your queue, are anything but. 

I first noticed this back around the release of The Dark Knight, because I was anticipating the DVD release and looking forward to watching it again.  On netflix.com, I browsed to New Releases and to my surprise, The Dark Knight was not listed under Popular New Releases.  Since then, I’ve monitored it and found that true popular new releases almost never show up under the Netflix section of the same name.

Let’s do a little experiment right now and see what we find.  First, I’m going to bing search for “top new dvd rentals”.  I quickly find ROTTEN TOMATOES: Top Rentals and

Now, let’s go over to the Netflix New Releases and look at the popular new releases row.  Hmmm, there doesn’t seem to be any of the actual popular rentals on the list.  Maybe if we look at “See all”…

Now, we have the full first page of Popular New Releases and again, none of the actual popular ones that you might want to be prompted to rent are on there.

Clearly, Netflix’ definition of Popular New Release must be different than the reasonable definition that most people would think of – something like “DVDs that aren’t actually popular, but as we want you to rent them instead of actual popular DVDs.”

I have my own theory on why Netflix does it this way.  They don’t need to promote actual popular ones, because (a) people will seek them out anyway, and (b) they don’t have enough copies of the popular ones to meet the demand.  So, instead, when you use the tools that you think would help you browse good options for you and your family, they throw up other stuff that they want you to rent instead.  Bleh!

Netflix does list the videos, if you know about them and search them out.  Take a look at the top two in my queue for example, which have been there since the movies first released weeks ago.  Note that the expected availability is “Long wait”:

The is a Bad Business decision, in my opinion – and one of the reasons I am so open to new services being offered, like Red Box, when it is introduced into our local grocery store.  And even though I love streaming DVD TV series from Netflix to my XBox, I think it is time to investigate reducing my plan to the minimum and looking around for alternative options.  Netflix may still give the best value, but they’ve given me enough reason to at least look around.