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And as short as a day waiting for the mail or even a trip to the video store can be, having streaming video means Netflix has something to kill time _right now_. I'm not a movie afficianado and neither are most people I know, so the fact that only some movies are available online doesn't present much of a problem (I'll just pick one that looks good enough).

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I suppose I'm in the "problem" audience here as I usually go to Netflix with a particular title in mind. The title is almost always not available for instant watching, and I've come to the point where I just assume it isn't on Netflix.

Netflix may have a ton of streamable content, but if you have to approach it from a non-specific point-of-view, it's questionable how valuable a service it is for people like me.

Yes, showing up looking for specific titles is a recipe for disappointment, given how Netflix has to purchase content. But if you like movies, hie thee to instantwatcher.com, and you're going to do OK.

Their streaming business has only been around for < 1 year. That said, it's pretty impressive they have as many titles as they do. Their streaming catalog is only going to grow from here - even if it's at the demise of some in Hollywood.

4 years - Netflix started its streaming service in January 2007.

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