This doesn't surprise me, but it does make me sad because I think it's a short-sighted move that will hurt Netflix in the long run.
Full disclosure: my side-project (which I have woefully neglected of late: http://moviepresto.com) uses the Netflix API to determine if a movie is available on Netflix Instant or as a disc rental and then links accordingly. The title, description, basic info, and background image come from themoviedb.org. Personally, I'd prefer for my "what do I want to watch tonight?" decision start with the set of everything that's been released and then follow to "where is that available?", instead of starting with "what is available to watch on platform X?". My cynical side tells me that Netflix doesn't just want to be the center of the online streaming universe; they want to BE the universe.
Even more sadly, I think Netflix won't even realize what they are missing out on: potential user interface improvements that they could incorporate into their own products, ideas for integration they never would've thought of, potential great hires, etc.
Agreed! I wasn't aware of canistream.it until reading this thread and I'm very impressed with it.
I think if I was aware of that site when I started moviepresto, I wouldn't have built it. But, then again, I wouldn't have learned the things I learned in the process.
Full disclosure: my side-project (which I have woefully neglected of late: http://moviepresto.com) uses the Netflix API to determine if a movie is available on Netflix Instant or as a disc rental and then links accordingly. The title, description, basic info, and background image come from themoviedb.org. Personally, I'd prefer for my "what do I want to watch tonight?" decision start with the set of everything that's been released and then follow to "where is that available?", instead of starting with "what is available to watch on platform X?". My cynical side tells me that Netflix doesn't just want to be the center of the online streaming universe; they want to BE the universe.
Even more sadly, I think Netflix won't even realize what they are missing out on: potential user interface improvements that they could incorporate into their own products, ideas for integration they never would've thought of, potential great hires, etc.