Héctor Ramos

I just have one question. What kind of problem does not allow Puerto Rico Netflix Customers to use the service? We have high speed Internet, we have US Currency, we have Netflix Ready devices available. We're already paying, we're loyal customers of the disc feature, Why exclude us?

I'm seriously considering cancelling my service, as for now I will just downgrade what I have to the minimum allowed for Blue-Ray service.

Shame on you Netflix!

This is completely outrageous! It's not like sending the streaming data over the network is any different whether the endpoint is Puerto Rico, Hawaii or Alaska! If NetFlix has a valid reason (e.g. "our license agreements with the movie distribution companies explicitly exclude Puerto Rico, and we are bound by that contract"), that would be a sucky answer, but at least it seems less arbitrary and discriminatory as this one.

I suggest that every single Puerto Rican Netflix customer that reads this call their Customer Support line: log into your Netflix account (this is important, and later I'll tell you why), click on the "HELP" link near the bottom, and select the "Other" topic under the "Contact Customer Service" frame. This will show you their customer service phone number, as well as a service code. The reason why this is important is because after you call and make your complaint, you'll get an email about your call asking if you were satisfied with the service you received. Click on the link saying you were NOT satisfied, and you'll be given a textbox where you can explain the situation and give them a better idea of the issue (and, to be fair, I recommend you clearly state that your issue was not with the customer service representative him/herself, but rather with the answer he or she gave you).

I called myself and the rep told me what I assumed: that the contracts they signed with the movie companies bar them from allowing the function anywhere beyond the 50 states. In my message, I reminded them that Puerto Rico is bound by any and all Federal laws the movie companies may be concerned about (e.g. anti-piracy laws), so I expect it is Netflix's job to arrive at a contract that does not discriminate against thousands of their own loyal customers. I also mentioned this issue is already making the rounds on the Puerto Rican blogosphere and Twitter. :-D

So everyone who is reading this: call Netflix now! :-)

Just called Netflix Customer Service. They gave me the same PR speech about the contract limitation. I asked if that would change in the near future and again a PR answer "we are always looking to expand our service". Next I asked for an email to file a formal complaint and they didn't give it to me. Instead they offered to file the complaint for me. Right.....

I would cancel my account right now if not because I already paid this month, but will surely do so before next month's payment cycle. I strongly suggest everybody that's in the same situation to consider canceling your Netflix account.

Recently I did the same thing when I notice that they blocked my Xbox 360. I think is a lack of knowledge of where Puerto Rico stands in terms on laws etc with the United States. Definitely we should do like EL Rata suggested and call Netflix email them constantly so our voice should be heard. Another good thing will be to ask them, Why if I can rent it through Xbox Live Market Place why I can't stream it through your service is the same box and we are paying extra for your service?

As much as I share your outrage and disappointment, I'm afraid that all the backlash at Netflix is somewhat misdirected.

The reason Netflix does not send or allow movies to be streamed to Puerto Rico is not because they've decided not to, but because studios, the actual content owners, have created a logistical nightmare by severely restricting their licensing permissions for playing the content outside the continental US. Netflix does not have much choice but to comply with the law.

The real outrage should be directed at the movie studios themselves for applying such reactionary measures to their licenses in response to the enormous growth and reach of digital video online. There are no set standards for the licenses in the business, each studio applies permissions according to their own discretion, which leads to thousands of movies with wildly varying broadcast permission licenses. Managing each movie on a per case basis would require an enormously complex overhaul of the system to filter titles according to their bizarre license permissions (ie: this title can be watched on DVD in regions 1, 3 and 5, broadcasted in countries A and B, and can be streamed over affiliate networks in countries A, B, and C, but can only be streamed through non-affiliate networks in country D; does not apply to director's cut or unrated edition). It's no surprise Netflix hasn't figured out how to work this problem out, and has therefore decided to hold back while Hollywood gets their shit sorted out and realizes that A) PR is part of the United States, and B) to stop being greedy dickwads and make their content easy to access overseas.

Even badgering Netflix to put pressure on the studios to release overseas licenses is a rather moot proposition; since the advent of VHS, Hollywood has never been completely friendly to the movie rental market. It's never been a very lucrative market for them (with so many middlemen to be paid) and there's a great deal of loss of control. Netflix needs Hollywood to survive, not the other way around. The reason you're seeing content popping up on Hulu is because Hulu is a studio partnership that can decide for themselves where they want to release their content; they own it. Its a different case entirely with Netflix. As a matter of fact, Hulu's success is a direct threat to Netflix's business model (eliminate the middleman), and a very strong incentive to keep licensing permissions out of their (and therefore, our) hands. Oh, you wanna watch my movie on the internet? Cool, watch it on my site, Hulu, where every single cent of revenue (including ad money) goes directly to my wallet. What was that? You wanna watch it on Netflix? Nope, fuck you. i don't get paid as much through Netflix.

In conclusion, kindly divert your well-trained guns off Netflix, and aim them squarely at the movie studios. They're the ones holding back the content you wanna watch.

For the record, I am not in any way affiliated with Netflix. I recently cancelled my subscription due to not having the time to watch the movies I got.

---------------------
Editor's Comment: It is well known that Netflix is not specifically targetting Puerto Rico, they are just bowing down to the licensing nightmare created by the movie studios. However, as a company providing a service, it falls under their responsibility to reasonably disclose such limitations when it comes to clients to whom they can not provide their full inventory of services. I still receive reminders in the mail asking me to re-activate my account, with promises of unlimited Internet streaming. If we can not get this licensing restriction solved by Netflix, the least we can do is to get them to acknowledge the issue and handle it responsibly. They can either state it boldly on all their offers to Puerto Rico subscribers, or provide a credit to those who are affected. I understand this is a tricky issue, as Netflix did not change their rates once they added Instant Streaming to the disc-by-mail package, however it now forms part of their whole advertising campaign and is bordering on consumer fraud. Thanks for your comment. -Hector

This happened to me too, And I canceled the service and let netflix know via their twitter account.

If there was only a email out there we can send complaints like this too. This happened with the Playstation Video Store on the PS3, it was locked out to us, but people started complaining and they lifted the region lock on Puerto Rico. There is no reason why this would be any different.

Totally agreed that they should modify their communications to more accurately reflect the reality of their service. As for offering credit, I dunno. As you pointed out, the fees weren't changed when streaming was added... we are effectively complaining about something that was "free" in the first place. It reminds me a lot of this clip, especially the example brought up at 2:03 regarding free in-flight internet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jETv3NURwLc

I think this is a similar situation. We're paying our $18 for the 3 DVD option, and then streaming gets added at absolutely no extra charge, and we cry up a storm cause we're not getting the free bonus stuff. Would it have been fair for that guy on the plane to ask for a cheaper flight ticket because he didn't get the free in-flight internet promised? I dunno. There may be a fair case for pressuring Netflix to offer a cheaper 3 DVD/No streaming option, but I think it's bordering on consumer high-horse posturing to demand it as if we've somehow been slighted. Netflix has been trying hard and spending cash for a long time to get the streaming video technology running, when they finally do, they offer it at absolutely no additional charge, then proceed to get their hands tied by the studios who won't allow them to stream overseas ("You can either get permission to stream to just the continental 50 states, or you don't get permission to stream at ALL. Your choice." - What would your answer to that be?). Cue puertorricans complaining for not getting the free add-on the gringos are getting.

Again, I think there's room for complaint, especially in the communications and advertising they're letting out, but judging by the complaints and reactions I've been seeing around, we're coming off like a bit of spoiled brats and focusing our anger on just one part of a much larger problem while ignoring the content owners who hold the biggest accountability for the situation. Thanks for listening me out dude.

Also, forgot to mention one detail... I've noticed people bringing up the Playstation Video Store and comparing it to Netflix, saying that if it works for one, it should work for the other. As far as I know, The Playstation Video Store works similar to iTunes or Xbox Live movie rentals, where you pay on a per-rental basis and have very limited options for viewing the content. It is an entirely different distribution model than the one Netflix offers, which basically lets you stream movies on your instant-play queue whenever you want, as many times as you want.

Studios have no problem with you paying a bit to watch a movie once or twice in as many days, but they do have a BIG problem with you watching their content as many times as you want, from now till forever. And that's why they're totally cool signing off licenses for Playstation but holding back for Netflix.

You seriously need to get a grip. Just because you are in Puerto Rico doesnt make you a member of the 50 states in the United States. It makes you part of a country that has gotten a rotten deal thanks to the politicians that have run it for the past 100 years. You should be pissed off at the idiots, who gave the US the rights to make Puerto Rico a territory... Its lie being a member to Sams Club or Costco, but instead of buying the full boxes of cereal, you get the regular ones. Sucks doesnt it? What you need to do instead of ranting to people in PR about the terrible service you are getting from Netflix, is to either make a rant the next time Puerto Rico dismisses the opportunity to be a state at the next "Plesbicito", pick a better governor, actually move to one of the 50 "official" states or actually download Torrents like everyone else does.

Because boo fuckin hoo, if you dont understand how easy it is to steal a stream in a country where "It's a territory", but has different unsanctioned laws or actually untested laws for copyright, management of digital content, dmca exclusions and other viral ideas, would actually make it soooooooooooooooo expensive for netflix (far more expensive than a couple of thousand users that drop their subscription) and GOD forbid they are making a tactical bad business desition, I mean who would on their right mind piss off a bunch of puerto rican's in their little island. I mean... I could totally understand what happened in netflix's corporate HQ's:

Bill: Hey Ted how was your vacation in Poro Rico, see a lot of latina's...
Ted: Hey Bill, I tried but you know I was with the wife and kids and no, we got mugged by some hoolinhans by their mall. Awful experience...
Bill: Are you going to get back to them?
Ted: Yeah I am going to sign that proposal to cancel the LIVE STREAMING of movies down there, that is going to piss them off... dumbasses.
Bill: Har Har Dumbasses indeed....

Seriously... go install utorrent or transmission on your mac and go check out pirate bay... that way you can get the content free to boot.

My .02 cents on the matter.

Badr

------------------------------------
-Editor's Note:
Seriously, get off your cloud of douchebagdom. It is real simple to set up a VPN or proxy to bypass these restrictions; torrents are even simpler. This is not the issue being discussed here. You may go to the other political blogs to discuss Puerto Rico's status.
-Hector

El Mamerro, while your assessment as to where the restriction originates from is undoubtedly accurate, here's the fact of the matter: we are *NetFlix's* customers, NOT the movie studios'. NetFlix is the one that owes us service contracts that are fair to all their customers, and *especially* customers like Puerto Ricans who so far have been paying full-price for pretty crappy service (since it takes about twice as long to receive a movie than in the 50 states). Getting streaming video to make up for it seems like the most logical way to at least try to make it up to us, and I don't believe that NetFlix actually FOUGHT for this: I think the studios said "only the 50 states," and NetFlix sure "mmmmm, okay!".

While the outrage may indeed be directed at the studios... which studios? Whom do we contact? And why would *they* care? The fact of the matter is, we are NetFlix's customers, and they are the ones who owe us good service and equitable contract agreements. You can believe that if we successfully impress upon NetFlix how many customers they stand to lose because of these inequitable contract agreements they have with the studios, they'll actually have an incentive to negotiate a deal that includes Puerto Rico: if we stay quiet, why would they bother?

Me parece que el status de Puerto Rico, en este caso al menos, es insignificante. La verdadera cuestion aqui es que se esta pagando la misma cantidad de dinero y se esta recibiendo un servicio menor. Si es verdad que Netflix no tiene ningun poder sobre los estudios de produccion que son los que ponen las restricciones, Netflix tiene el DEBER de bajarle los precios a los/as subscriptores/as de Puerto Rico. Asi que no estoy de acuerdo con que la ira dirigida a Netflix este equivocada... Netflix tiene que compensar a sus clientes de la Isla. Si no pueden darles el contenido, bajen el precio.

I believe the Puerto Rican status question is not what should be debated here. The true crux of the matter is the fact that Puerto Ricans are paying the same amount for an inferior service. Though it may be true that Netflix has no power over studios and movie companies, it is their DUTY to lower the prices to Puerto Rican subscribers. I disagree with the fact that the ire directed at Netflix is "misdirected": Netflix must compensate their clients in the Island. If they cannot provide the service, they MUST lower the prices.

El Mamerro, I understand the impulse to just be grateful to Netflix that they even provide ANY service at all to Puerto Rico, and to not make a lot of noise when they don't offer a "free" service on the Island, because we wouldn't want to sound like spoiled brats. There are, after all, other companies who flat-out refuse to offer their services in Puerto Rico, and, to be fair, at least Netflix is trying.

However, one would have to be pretty naïve to think that this new service is truly "free": do you actually think they're offering it in order to lose money, out of the goodness of their hearts? No: they are probably offering it because they were making so much money before and spending comparatively so little on the contracts with the movie studios, that they expect that with the existing and projected new customer revenue they can make a profit: as simple as that.

In other words, they were counting on Puerto Rican customers to continue paying their existing fees for their continued crappy service, while not getting any of the benefits from the new offering. If we are their customers, we have every right to complain and expect them to provide us with the same level of service they provide all their stateside customers who are paying the exact same price we are.

If the people living in U.S. territories don't force Corporate America to take a long hard look at their contracts and how they unnecessarily do not offer services in Puerto Rico because of their misunderstanding or just plain ignorance of our legal situation, no one will do it for us. If we don't force them to care, why would they ever care?

Who to contact? I think the MPAA would be the logical starting choice, followed by any of the big six: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_film_studio#Today.27s_Big_Six

In the end, all I want to do is raise awareness that this problem does not rest completely on the shoulders of Netflix, and that the hate and vitriol should be directed above them as well. It is true we are the customers, not Hollywood, but Hollywood IS the supplier, and Netflix lays at its mercy as well. I would not know if Netflix fought that decision or not, but I would imagine it's in their best interests to spread their user base as wide as possible. What I have seen so far since the beginning of online distribution is one side working hard to make it easy and cheaper for customers to hear/watch content, and another side doing everything they can to prevent that from happening. There is no doubt in my mind who's the real villain here.

By all means, I hope that puerto ricans raising their voice with complaints somehow entices all parties responsible to come up with a solution. But a strict focus on Netflix, a company with over 10 million subscribers and an American Customer Satisfaction Index of 86 (industry average: 75) seems a little bit myopic to me. We represent a very small fraction of their customer base, and looking at it from a completely objective point of view, the positive goodwill applied to the majority by offering the service free of charge grossly overweighs the negative of limiting the service to a small minority. I honestly wouldn't hold my breath over Netflix biting the hand that feeds it over a few complaints.

On the other hand, the MPAA faces an overwhelming dissatisfied global force of millions that has them scrambling in desperation, and their reactionary measures are alienating them even further. That's a battle that can be (and will be) won, and it will result in the freeing of restrictions for streaming content worldwide.

By all means, cancel your Netflix accounts, but also limit your visits to theaters, buying movie merchandise, and other main traditional methods of revenue for movie studios. And when you're gonna point the finger and call someone the Head Asshole, tilt it a few degrees above Netflix (Deputy Asshole at best) and tell Hollywood to suck it.

Forgot to add that strangely enough my Sprint Mobile Broadband connection works with Netflix Streaming, but not my Cable connection. And yeah i know that Sprint get's a US IP, but that's exactly my point. It's a region lock which is just uses a filter in which automatically sets Puerto Rico as an international location and blocks it.

I wasn't saying before that it was the same situation as with the Playstation Video Store, but it is similar in which they had a region lock filter, which automatically set Puerto Rico as an international location, not even a territory of the US. Which I was told by Sony support that is what happened, upon people complaining (they actually have email support) . Puerto Rico's IP addresses where set to US Territory, and it gave them access to the Video Store. So if by any chance this is the issue, then Netlix is clearly not looking at the problem, and we need to make them look at it somehow. It would be easier if they had some sort of Email Support, which they don't. And the phone support doesn't completely convince me.

Instant viewing is ok but truth of the matter is that their movie collection available is weak at best. I'll tell you what really is starting to tick me off is the fees for blu-ray access. At first it was 1 dollar for blu-ray access and recently they raised it to THREE dollars. Bastards!!!

What would be great is if Netflix would make some sort of partnership with the USPS so you can drop off the movies in the post office and automatically it updates in the system and queue. This would reduce the amount of time it takes to receive new movies. Somehow I don't see it happening any time soon :)...

"And still I see no changes. Can a brother get a little peace? There's war on the streets and war in the middle east!!!" -tupac

La verdad es injusto... Si tuviera cuenta de Netflix la cerraba! Pero gracias a los Dioses yo uso uTorrent! :)

Los apoyo 100%

If it is so easy to setup a proxy or a VPN why are you WHINING ABOUT IT. Holy Jumping Fucking Jesus. All you fucking Puerto Ricans in the island do is WHINE WHINE WHINE... If you dont like Netflix's services, then just cancel the service. They are not going to make a penny less because you ludites are not part of their customer base.

Secondly, I was not discussing the political status of the island. It is obvious I made my choice already and decided that political satiric environment was not for me. I was simply debating that all people do in the island is bitch about things they dont have because they are a US TERRITORY. That's all Puerto Rico is... a Welcome mat for the US to wipe their dirty shoes at. If you want to benefit of how companies run their deals, then make Puerto Rico a fucking state or move to a real state... Then you can get all the goodies like everyone else.

If you are going to be a cocksucker, and insult me, let me be the first to tell you that last but not least the only cloud I'm on is called "SUCCESS" it sucks if you can't be on it. The view up here to down where you are is not pretty but at least its quiet, since there so few of us up here.

-------------------------------
Editor's Note:
The comment speaks for itself. If you need any more evidence of douchebaggery, just lookup this guy's blog and Twitter feed - he's like a 30-something stuck with a pre-teen brain. He's angry at my "whining", yet he keeps coming to my blog to whine about my writings. I've posted his whole comment in it's whole, unedited glory of doucheness. -Hector

How to get Netflix streaming in Puerto Rico http://bit.ly/l6P9R Let me know if you need anything else!

------------------------------
Editor's Note: Hi Luis! Thanks for sharing. I just want to point out that being able to watch Instant Streaming through these methods is not the issue I am discussing - for months I used a crude workaround to watch Netflix (they didn't check the Xbox's IP). The issue at hand is that by default you are being blocked, and are forced to use these workarounds which are not known by the majority of their paying user base. Thanks, Hector

Move to the states, become a first class citizen and stop bitching, besides, the streaming content is not that great.

----------
Editor's note: Thanks for the invite but I am not ready to move in with you just yet. -Hector

So i went ahead and did the following. I wrote an email to Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, regarding the situation:

"From: badr <gilbertpalau@gmail.com>
To: Reed Hastings; Hastings; rhastings - reply
Sent: Tue Jun 02 20:12:06 2009
Subject: Question about Netflix & Puerto Rico

Mr. Hastings;

I was born and raised in Puerto Rico. I live now in the states, just because I got offered a job with a government agency that doesnt have an office in the island.

With all due respect I would like to know, why if Puerto Rico is a sanctioned US Territory (until a couple of years ago, the US Navy bombarded an island where civilians lived less than 5 miles from the blast radius... Vieques, google it), the residents have to pay the full price but not be able to stream the content.

Just curious if you could answer it it would be awesome... Thanks!"

I got a reply just now, not directly from Mr. Hastings, but either way a reply is a reply:

"Dear Mr. Badr:

Thank you for your email. Mr. Hastings makes every effort to read each and every email that is sent to him, but is unable to personally reply to all of them. Please know that we appreciate you taking the time to provide us with your feedback and comments.

You are unable to utilize our instant watching functionality in Puerto Rico due to licensing restrictions. We’re only able to provide this functionality within the 50 United States. Unfortunately, our licensing agreement does not include U.S. territories at this time.

You are charged the same rate without instant watching is because instant watching is not a paid service. Currently, instant watching is a free added benefit to a paid DVD rental subscription. There are limitations to this functionality and unfortunately not everyone will have access to this feature. However, because it is a free feature, we do not discount accounts that do not have access.

If you have any further questions or comments, please feel free to contact me directly. I can be reached via email at Kgrey@Netflix.com.

Thanks,

Kristy Grey
Netflix, Inc
----------------------

And there you have it. If someone wants to post this in the consumerist, since I am at work and I cant access that site from here, be my guest since I think it would clear some people up from their doubts and what not. I am going to write back to them asking them to make an official statement on this on the Consumerist, so that people know what is going on.

Badr

I just got the response to yesterday’s email:
Dear Mr. Badr:
Thank you again for your email(s).
I understand that not having the ability to stream might be frustrating. However, please keep in mind that customers are paying to receive DVD’s by mail, not to instantly watch movies & TV episodes. Like any of our site functionalities (Friends, Community, Profiles) the ability to watch movies and TV episodes instantly can be removed at any time without affecting the service itself.
We are aware that this functionality has limitations. This does not only affect customers residing in Puerto Rico. As per our terms of use, not all of our customers will have the ability to use instant watching.
As a comparison, many cable companies offer free video on demand. Often times, some customers will receive the video on demand and other customers will not. The cable company does not offer a discounted rate to the customers that do not receive the video on demand feature. Video on demand is a free added benefit (with limitations); similar to watch instantly.
Our streaming service is different than Hulu or ABC. We are not streaming our own content and do not necessarily own the rights to the titles. We are bound by our licensing agreements and do not have the rights to offer this functionality to Puerto Rico residents at this time.
In my previous response, I should have said that our streaming service is limited to the 50 United States and the District of Columbia.
I hope that I’ve answered all of your questions. If you have any further questions, feel free to read the Features & Functionalities section in our Terms of Use, which is where you will find information about instant watching.
Thanks,
Kristy Grey
Netflix, Inc
To which I responded:
Kristy;

Thanks for responding.

I understand all your points, except one.

Washington DC is not a state, I dont know if its something between a state and a territory, but historically DC is not a state, yet they receive the same treatment as a state. Is it because it’s the nation’s capital (not trying to be sarcastic), and i bet if Obama doesn’t get his streaming there are going to be problems. HA!

I understand the “streaming” portion of Netflix is a “free” service, then again its a service you offer to your paying customers, so people see it as a part of the package.

I would completely understand if Puerto Rico were outside of the US Territory Range, but even the Virgin Islands, get the streaming service, but Puerto Rico can’t…

Why is this then? Can you explain to me how that “licesing” issue works and why specifically it cannot be offered in the Island?

I appreciate the time you take to answer my questions. I love Netflix, we enjoy it very much at our home, but I have taken an interest in this issue on behalf of other people.

Thanks for your time and wait for your next email.

Again, waiting for their response.
----
Not wishing to stray or steal Mr. Ramos's attention, I have written an article based solely in the emails I have sent to Netflix, If you want to read the whole shebang, you can go by my blog http://bytesandbeans.com and check it out as well. The more people write about this, the more noise the make, the more Netflix will be inclide to change their policies. IMHO anyways.

Is it true that the USVI get streaming ? That's f***ed up.

Last Update from Netflix:
It seems Netflix is done with my questions. I am publishing my last letter from them, and my response. Sorry Puerto Rico, you either going to have to suck it up or cancel your subscription. I honestly think you should do the latter, canel your account although I dont think that will help as much as just calling their offices or emailing them. I’d sue them honestly…

Dear Mr. Badr:

You are correct, DC is not historically a state. They do still have instant watching functionality. Please note that we do not control who does or does not receive this functionality. Unfortunately, I cannot comment specifically as to why they are included while some territories are not.

Our licensing limitations are a proprietary agreement and I cannot divulge any further information than what I have already provided to you.

Please know that we’re always looking to improve our service, and its features. We look to a time when all of our customers can enjoy all of our offerings. If and when that time comes, I will reach out to you directly to let you know.

Best,
Kristy Grey\Netflix, Inc

Frankly I think they didnt like me telling them that if Obama doesn’t get his Netflix streamed to the White House, there would be problems in Netflix with the Federal Government.

My response:

Kristy;

No problem. I appreciate what you have divulged already. Bottom line people in Puerto Rico have to suck it up once more. This will never change for us, until we become a state.

I appreciate your responses, frankly I was surprised you were able to talk so much about the topic before getting yanked in the chain. I will be relaying this info to the people in my blog and the rest of the news papers in puerto rico covering this situation. I wont be bothering you anymore with questions. It is clear that Netflix wont do anything on behalf of Puerto Rico and their customers.

I had a good conversation with a couple of Lawyers that cover copyright, FCC, and movie distribution into Puerto Rico and the US. They said, that Puerto Rico is sanctioned under Federal Law, to enjoy any priviledges the United States of America has. Meaning that if a movie is streamed, sold or rented in any of the 50 States including the Disctrict of Columbia, it had rights approving its distribution, digitally, sales or rent in Puerto Rico without any restriction or condition.

They also explained that if a movie was prohibited in the 50 States or the District of Columbia, then it would also be restricted in Puerto Rico under the same laws without exception.

This is greatly explained in detail under the Distribution Law and the Puerto Rico Regulation of Fair Competition No. VI - January 21, 1980:

“For new enterprising companies wishing to include Puerto Rico into their venues, the safest option is to draft a detailed and precise contract that includes alternative dispute resolution options, limitations of jurisdiction and clauses which reserve the right to sell their products on a non-exclusive relationship.

Otherwise, they run the risk of facing several years of costly litigation, and seeing how a fruitful consumer market such as Puerto Rico turns into a sour venture for everyone involved.”

This means that if Puerto Rican customers of yours that lived in Puerto Rico, and were affected by the Decision of Netflix not transmitting the streaming service (that is free for paying customers, but not free to everyone else), and they made a Class Action Suite against Netflix for discrimmination. I’m afraid Netflix would loose. This would be more costly to you guys than just streaming the content to Puerto Rican’s.

Eitherway I appreciate you took time to answer my questions and give me a better perspective on how Netflix operates in terms of what they choose to offer to the US, its states, territories and the Disctric of Columbia (although there was no explanation why DC gets it or not).

Although I also understand that the streaming services are delivered “as is” meaning its not a service you guarantee to your customers to have.

Badr

—

With this I conclude my investigation on Netflix vs. Puerto Rico. My conclusion on this is that as the Netflix End User Agreement clearly states that Netflix is not obligued to offer their streaming service to anyone regardless they are on the 50 states or the exclusive District of Columbia because the “streaming service” is not a part of their services. Its a “free” ad-on for their paying customers, but if it doesnt work in your area of residence, its basically not their fault.

As you saw, Netflix is not giving away the specific reasons, as why they can offer streaming in the Nation’s capital (Washington DC, which is confirmed by Netflix that it is not a State) but not on the US Territories like Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. I keep thinking that my assumption, that if the President of the United States doesnt receive his streaming into his TV, then Netflix would not exist. What Puerto Rico has to do is show the President of the United States, how much cheaper it would be for them to relocate the White House to Puerto Rico and this will solve ALL of the problems in the Island plus save a couple of billions to the US Government. With that cocky attitude I would just Sue them.

Héctor, in case you had not yet seen it yet, the Orlando Sentinel also wrote this story about the Netflix issue with Puerto Rico (and they also mentioned your blog, so you can add it to the section where you describe blogs that reference yours). :-D

I would like to also throw out in the loop that the United States armed forces are also shafted on this delema. I am stationed in Great Britian but I am currently in Iraq at the moment. I was looking all of this up hoping that someone is putting a bug in someones ear about the situation with the Netflix on Xbox 360 situation. Even though the only thing I find is that the main topic of this fight is that Puerto Rico deserves the same priviledges as the USA has as far as livestreaming goes, maybe it could be worth while to add some fuel to the fire to show that service members that are overseas are stuck with the same problem. When I called Netflix about the situation they informed me that most of the people calling and complaining were military. How do you think it makes us feel that these people can turn their backs to us as much as you. I could've sworn that I fight for the freedom and rights for the US only to get shafted and a pat on the back saying "appreciate your sacrifice, but sucks to be you thx for using netfliux" I understand they are just a middleman but seriously even if they refuse to throw in a word for Puerto Rico, why not say "hey thx for choosing netflix just enter you military information and lets get you setup". whatever I cant really watch TV where I am at anyway, I just salvage for internet when I can get a chance.

I've sucribed recently to Netflix (I'm still on my free trial), hoping for the Instant Watching feature to be able in seconds and then i found the exclution of Puerto Rico. I have knowledge of Netflix service by a friend in NY. This friend doesn't use the IW service because the internet is limited and the DVD delivery works great there. I wasn't aware of this IW issue until I got angry because the movie delivery takes almost five days!!! I started looking over the internet the reasons for the streaming services was not able in PR and i found this blog and the articles quoted here. There are certain details about the explanations given by Netflix representatives that are reasonable, but why the can't make new arranges with studios and bring the services?? I will join this and cancel my service.

I'm one of those who subscribe Netflix, just because the Streaming. And guess what...! I'm one of those who canceled too. 30 comments @ $10 = $300 loss monthly. And probably there's a lot more outside.

Once you decide to include us in Puerto Rico, I'll reactivate the membership. But right now, forget it!!!

Netflix also excludes the U.S. Virgin Islands. I have been getting netflix movies in the mail and had my internet through a Sprint Aircard. With the aircard, I had access to the instant movies, but the connection was too slow to actually watch a movie. It would take too long to buffer. Yesterday, I got regular dsl internet to make use of this feature. When I went to watch a movie online, it says that I am outside of the 50 states and cannot watch it. So it's not just Puerto Rico that is having this problem.

Hello, I was extremely excited to get Netflix because It is now available for the Playstaton 3, I just opened my new account and about 15 minutes later after speaking with a rep from Netflix, I canceled my accout. Im very angry and frustrated with Netflix as are we all. PR is practically a state in many more ways that some of the 50 states it does cover. There is no excuse for this, at least not a real one except the lame one they give us. The rep was nice nd she said she would pass along my complaint to higher management, lets see if that helps our cause. Hopefully Puerto Rico will be able to participate just like the other 50 states and e able to stream video instantly in the near future.

In response to one of the posters above (I forget who, but can't be bothered to read all the comments again to verify), who wrote that Puerto Rico is "a country where 'It's a territory', but has different unsanctioned laws or actually untested laws for copyright, management of digital content, dmca exclusions and other viral ideas, would actually make it soooooooooooooooo expensive for netflix", I'd like to point out that the comment is totally incorrect.

Whoever wrote the language quoted above has no clue about which laws are applicable in Puerto Rico. Contrary to his or her statement, *all* of the federal laws mentioned in the comment are fully applicable here, including all U.S. copyright, patent, and trademark laws, etc... There's even a federal court here that enforces such laws. So Netflix/MPAA's conduct can't be excused on the basis of PR having a different legal system.

Instead, it's obvious that Netflix simply hasn't bothered to look into this issue. I am even willing to bet that the licenses that Netflix obtained DO permit streaming to Puerto Rico. Most likely, Netflix's geographically-illiterate lawyers just *assumed* (incorrectly) that Puerto Rico is outside of the U.S. and therefore U.S. licenses don't extend to Puerto Rico. And the worst part is that, even after receiving and responding to the various emails that some of you have sent, Netflix still does not seem to be interested in looking into this issue. That is the most galling aspect of all of this: this issue has a solution that other companies have reached, but Netflix isn't bothering to even try.

Netflix isn't alone here, of course. Amazon is another example: it claims that it does not have authority under ANY of its licenses to sell ANY electronics here. Strange, given that lots of other online retailers have no problem shipping electronics to Puerto Rico (e.g., Newegg, etc...). Again, I am sure that they just haven't even bothered either to find out whether their licenses really do prohibit them from selling electronics to PR, or to try to negotiate extensions to cover Puerto Rico (does anyone think that any sane electronics manufacturer would say no to Amazon?).

Want another example? The iPhone, which became available only in October 2008, after a year+ of wrangling between Apple, AT&T, and Claro - they couldn't make up their minds about whether PR was part of Latin America (in which Claro had exclusive rights to the iPhone) or the USA (ditto for AT&T), so... no one sold the iPhone in PR, and consumers here got screwed. And why? Because some moron lawyers didn't know enough about geography and political economy to clarify whether PR was one thing or the other when they were drafting the original licenses.

In sum, yes, because we're a relatively small market, it's difficult to get the attention of companies like Amazon, Netflix, or AT&T. But we should do what we can, and that includes sending emails like the ones some of you have been sending, or even cancelling subscriptions and rewarding those other companies that do bother to cater to the needs of their clients.

I am too extremely unhappy with Netflix for blocking the instant streaming service. I currently live in the US Virgin Islands----Yes the US! Virgin Islands and cannot stream content. I considered cancelling my service but prefer not to because it's convenient and I've had the service for Years now. I am Very disappointed in Netflix. I hope something is done about this ASAP. Good Luck on your quest and for speaking out for us Unfortunate AMERICANS in the Caribbean(U.S).

Two days ago I bought my PS3, saw that i could watch movies online through Netflix. Today I joined Netflix, went to the "watch movies" section and immediately saw the message saying Only 50 states can watch movies online. Two minutes later I Canceled my subscription. I really hate when Companies treat Puerto Rico like some unknown, backwards country.
Were good enough to go to war as Americans, but not good enough to be treated as such.

I just found out today after subscribing that the instant streaming servive doesnt work in PR.
This is stupid. I dont even care about the dvd rental , all i wanted was the streaming service.
If i want to rent a dvd ill go to a redbox.

Has anybody tried to report this Netflix full-price half service to the BBB? PR is governed by federal laws and that should be dealt with by this agency.

Take em to DACO see where that goes...

Damn funny all ur comments, and great posts all of you......., Badr, great job investigating this matter........i'm a ps3 customer too who got the netflix account for the streaming......so booo fuckin' hoooo for us........i'm cancelling the account right away........., by the way........blockbuster offers the same service (but no streaming) and u can take the movies to the nearest blockbuster and exchange them.......ohhhh and no extra charge for blu ray........... but i'll prefer the streaming option.......without using a VPN.........and another fact.......we're not that little of a market............for example, JC Penney sales are higher in PR, than in the states, we're a consumering culture.........and the gaming industry makes more money here than in the states too.........that's why the ps3, xbox and now the wii users are so frustated with this issue..........and if we decide to be a state (jaja, funny joke......), if the us makes us a state, we're gonna have more congressmen and senators than 43 states of the nation.............so we do count for something......5 millions customers in the island, 9 million in NY, 2 millions in Florida, etc...............we count.............so llet's complaint and we're gonna see some results.......or just cancelled for subs.........my 2 cents......