Netflix continues to make headlines — but this time, it's ostensibly good news. On Thursday, the movie-streaming-and-DVD-by-mail giant unveiled a four-year deal with Warner Bros. TV and CBS Corp. that allows Netflix to stream 700 hours of past seasons of CW shows like Gossip Girl and The Vampire Diaries, as well as new shows like Ringer (though not until its current season has aired). Will access to old CW shows be enough to placate Netflix customers, battered by a steep price hike and flummoxed by Netflix's strange business strategy?
This is good — but not enough: While "it's great to see Netflix expanding its catalog of content," delaying access to these shows by an entire season is a problem, says Christina Warren at Mashable. Its two biggest competitors — Hulu Plus and TV Everywhere — offer shows the day after they air, as do many networks' websites. At the same time, Amazon Prime is expanding its offerings. If Netflix is going to compete, it needs to "to focus on closing its distribution window or upping the quality of its content."
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