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DVD rentals costly to Postal Service
The Washington Times ^ | 11-29-07 | Jim McElhatton

Posted on 11/29/2007 12:02:29 PM PST by JZelle

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To: JZelle

Time to start automatic downloads straight to your DVR.


61 posted on 11/29/2007 12:47:01 PM PST by ElectricStrawberry (1/27 Wolfhounds...cut in half during the Clinton years.)
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To: holden

What’s bizarre about this is that NetFlix has been fine-tuning their envelope for years.

http://money.cnn.com/2006/04/20/technology/business2_netflixgallery/index.htm

Seems like the first people that the Postal Service should have gone to with this problem is NetFlix.


62 posted on 11/29/2007 12:49:31 PM PST by mvpel (Michael Pelletier)
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To: Slapshot68
With my bank’s online bill pay, I only have one bill that comes to via snail mail, everything else is emailed to me.

My neighbor's like you, and started continually using our computer to access his stuff and pay his bills when his machine took a dump. It was a warranty thing, so it took him quite awhile to get up and running again.

63 posted on 11/29/2007 12:51:19 PM PST by ErnBatavia (...forward this to your 10 very best friends....)
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To: JZelle
Just hire illegals for the jobs Americans just won’t do. I’m sure they will hand sort with no bennies and no vacation for $6 an hour. After they get through, they could clean and mop.
64 posted on 11/29/2007 12:53:14 PM PST by chuckles
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To: ErnBatavia

“My neighbor’s like you, and started continually using our computer to access his stuff and pay his bills when his machine took a dump. It was a warranty thing, so it took him quite awhile to get up and running again.”

I can see where that would be a problem. My wife has her own laptop so we have backup as far as web access, not to mention I can access the bank’s site while at work.

I hope your neighbor had a backup hard drive.


65 posted on 11/29/2007 12:53:21 PM PST by Slapshot68
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To: JZelle

Don’t cry for me Argentina...I remember penny postcards and twice a day delivery. Of course that was before a certain political group thought that it could take in a lot of donations if it sucked up to the mail order advertising industry and also allowed a postal union.


66 posted on 11/29/2007 12:54:37 PM PST by Don Corleone (Leave the gun..take the cannoli)
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To: kc8ukw

Private carriers are forced to charge more than the postal service on many small packages by law.

Believe me, after this last humungous rate hike the USPS is catching up fast! If you use the USPS for business mailing you already know what I mean.


67 posted on 11/29/2007 12:56:30 PM PST by Bernard Marx
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To: brwnsuga
We loves our Netlixes, too.

Wow!I didn't know the internet was that advanced. Where can I invest?

68 posted on 11/29/2007 12:57:18 PM PST by listenhillary (You get more of what you focus on)
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To: Nathan Zachary

“upgrade your pc, add a dvd burner.”

Will that actually work for Netflix downloaded movies? It looks as if they’re using a streaming type system, rather than downloading the entire movie as a divx or DVD image or something like that.

If you do get a file like that, I could use a USB thumb drive to watch the movies through my DVD player, which will play media on USB devices. Anybody actually doing this? Of course, I could just download pirated movies and do the same thing, but I don’t mind paying a reasonable amount to access media legally.


69 posted on 11/29/2007 1:03:26 PM PST by -YYZ- (Strong like bull, smart like ox.)
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To: holden
Netflix could strike a deal with the Postal "service" and tell 'em they can reduce their costs handling Netflix envelopes in by three-quarters, saving 'em $15M, even though next year's business will surely increase.

The Post Office already offers a deal. You get to send things 17 cents cheaper if you package it in such a way that it is machine sortable. However, the PO didn't do a very good job of defining machine sortable, and Netflix is taking advantage of that and using cheap, crappy materials that formally meet the specification, but are not machine sortable.

The Post Office should simply fix the specification so that it accurately represents what their machines can sort.

If the PO doesn't go for it, tell 'em to pound sand.

That would be brilliant since the next cheapest alternative that Netflix has to the Post Office will cost them at least 5 times as much. Netflix would be far, far better off simply paying the extra 17 cents per item for hand sorting than to quit using the Post Office, though using higher quality shipping envelopes would be even cheaper.

70 posted on 11/29/2007 1:08:11 PM PST by untrained skeptic
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To: PAR35
What I mean is: "The USPS has a statutory monopoly on (i) letter mail, including addressed advertising mail (although express services provided at premium rates have an exemption from the monopoly)" Source
71 posted on 11/29/2007 1:15:23 PM PST by kc8ukw
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To: untrained skeptic
I never heard of the Post Office until I saw Lance Armstrong with a USPS Jersey. That was 25 mil a year for that Jersey!

The USPS spends about a 1/4 of a billion a year in advertising. I guess no one would know what those Post office buildings in town were for without it!

The price of Priority is now too expensive and the tracking is horrible. I have been printing many labels at home for UPS these days...

72 posted on 11/29/2007 1:23:11 PM PST by Afronaut (Press 2 for English - Thanks Mr. President !)
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To: Slapshot68
Well they’ll have to find a way for me to burn the movie myself because I’m not going to watch a movie at my computer as is the case now with Netflix’s internet rental service.

I think you might be a bit confused about this service. You still receive the same DVDs in the mail. They added an additional service "free" which allows you to stream movies straight to your computer. You are able to watch as many hours a month as dollars you pay. So if you have the $15 a month plan you get the DVDs as well as 15 hours of streamed movies. I use it to watch really bad 80s television shows like Red Dwarf.
73 posted on 11/29/2007 1:30:01 PM PST by IronKros (The pig put foot. Grunt. Foot in what? ketchup)
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To: PissAndVinegar
or you could learn how to connect your PC to your TV

My Dell 37" LCD TV is an awesome PC monitor and HD TV.

74 posted on 11/29/2007 1:35:06 PM PST by Griddlee
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To: Badeye

and chances are when your online bill pay sends out a check they use the USPS...


75 posted on 11/29/2007 1:39:18 PM PST by N3WBI3 (Ah, arrogance and stupidity all in the same package. How efficient of you. -- Londo Mollari)
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To: kc8ukw
"The USPS has a statutory monopoly on (i) letter mail

But we aren't talking about letter mail here.

(although express services provided at premium rates have an exemption from the monopoly)

Which legalized services offered by FedEx et al in competition with USPS Express mail, as distinguished from first class mail service.

76 posted on 11/29/2007 1:39:18 PM PST by PAR35
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To: JZelle

Well, if the postal service allowed competition via private delivery of the mail, they wouldn’t have to complain about this.


77 posted on 11/29/2007 1:40:18 PM PST by Tribune7 (Dems want to rob from the poor to give to the rich)
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To: Slapshot68

I honestly dont care if 99.9999% of mail is email or handled by UPS/FedEX but structurally the sending of mail is the responsibility of the federal govt and should be a publically run service.


78 posted on 11/29/2007 1:40:33 PM PST by N3WBI3 (Ah, arrogance and stupidity all in the same package. How efficient of you. -- Londo Mollari)
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To: USFRIENDINVICTORIA

It doesn’t seem to support component video, only S-video and composite.


79 posted on 11/29/2007 1:40:34 PM PST by JZelle
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To: MrB
Sounds like someone needs to upgrade their equipment to satisfy the needs of their customers...

My first thoughts also. That, or work with these firms to redesign the package so it will work on their machinery.

All these postal types know how to do is raise rates.

80 posted on 11/29/2007 1:46:32 PM PST by Oatka (A society of sheep must in time beget a government of wolves." –Bertrand de Jouvenel)
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