If you’ve got some free time and programming skills, Netflix has a job for you… www.netflixprize.com.

Reuters says: Online DVD rental company Netflix Inc on Sunday announced that it would pay $1 million to the first person to develop software to improve the accuracy of Netflix’s movie recommendation system by 10 percent. Netflix’s Web-based recommendation system “learns” what kinds of films subscribers like by asking them to rate the films they watch. The system then recommends lists of similar titles, unique to each user.

Seattle Post says: The differences will be tracked by a program that quantifies how well the recommendation systems predict which movies will be liked or disliked by a profiled consumer.

Never enough time…

• Yet another media streamer, Netgear’s DAVE launches with new name. (Engadget)
• DirecTV getting HD DVR with built-in home media features this fall. (EngadgetHD)
• TV DVD thrives despite downloads. (Video Business)
• Coming soon to the tiny screen: video downloads. (Time)
• Motorola acquires IPTV/VOD software infrastructure company Vertasent. (Motorola)

Never enough time…

• Hands on with Hauppauge’s wireless media streamer. (SnapStream)
• DivX launches YouTube-alike. (GigaOm)
• The demise of Sony’s PSP. (TechLore)
• Netflix movie download servers found? (HackingNetflix)
• AOL signs deals to offer movie video downloads. (TechCrunch)

I’m what you’d call a casual gamer — I’ll play a game a few hours a day over a long weekend maybe once a month. I joined Gamefly.com, a service like Netflix, in 2005 as an economical way to get a different title each month.

I’ve been downsizing recently in preparation for a move and decided it was time to unload the Xbox. So I cancelled Gamefly and shipped back The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay. A week or so later I get an email from GameFly saying they haven’t received the game and they will charge me the full cost of Riddick… Though all will be forgiven if I “reactivate your account.” Huh? At this point I should mention when I tried to cancel online they kept throwing up extra screens to dissuade me. Since the first email, I’ve received two more. The final email I received this morning informed me I will be billed $52.49, though I have 60 days to return the game via Registered Mail to have the charge reversed. Of course, I also have the option of reactivating my account online.

I tried contacting support earlier this week, but their phone lines don’t open until 9AM PST weekdays (doesn’t help me much since I try to take care of these things first thing in the morning EST). So I fired off an email to the provided email address which was promptly ignored. I’d call them today regarding today’s email however they don’t staff their phone lines today (Saturday). Interesting how that works, eh?

There are three possibilities here:

1. The USPS lost the game. I find this unlikely as I shipped back two Netflix discs at the same time which successfully made it out of the local drop box (where most postal crimes seem to occur). What are the odds the last game I ship back is the only one they lose?
2. GameFly got the disc but hasn’t processed it yet or has misplaced it. This is a distinct possibility given the horribly slow response times I’ve experienced in sending/receiving games.
3. GameFly is manipulating me. Initially I would have said this is unlikely and a paranoid thought, however the cancellation roadblocks combined with warning emails offering amnesty if I resubscribe to avoid “delinquent” fines makes me wonder.

So how will I proceed? I’m hopeful this is a bluff on their part or internal inefficiencies that will be corrected shortly without my intervention. Though the second a $52.49 charge shows up on my AmEx card, it will be contested. If that doesn’t resolve the issue, I’ll have to waste time getting a used game off ebay or Amazon for >$10 and send it to them via Registered Mail. If I’m forced to go to that much trouble, you can guarantee I’ll be blogging about this again which is possibly more effective than dealing with the BBB. Regardless of the outcome, when I purchase a 360 with HD-DVD this fall, I’ll be getting discs via a service other than GameFly.

UPDATE: I just received an email from GameFly. Apparently they thought I wanted to buy the game since I didn’t respond to their emails. Uh, hello I have to contact them whenever I don’t want to buy a game? Never mind that the email said send the game back (which I had) OR I could reactivate (I think not) online. Last but not least, I guess they forgot they were responding to the email I did send them. “Kevin” informed me the $52.49 charge would be reversed.

Never enough time…

• Pay Circuit City to bypass the DMCA for you. (Davis Freeberg)
• HAVA place-shifting boxes now shipping. (Press Release)
• Hands-on with the new Archos 604 PMP. (T3)
• Fellow consumer charts Netflix shipping patterns. (Hacking Netflix)

If the BBB can rate these guys, why not me? I’m a stickler for good service — I won’t patronize companies providing inferior service. When I had a billing problem with Sprint about 5 years ago and the phone rep called me a liar, I switched to VoiceStream (Jamie Lee Curtis had nothing to do with it). Conversely, I’m willing to pay for good service: Apple’s not cheap, but they generally take care of you.

The most important aspect of customer service is being treated with respect. If you hear me out and professionally attempt to resolve my issue you’re doing a good job. Obviously, the next set of criteria is being able to actually resolve the issue efficiently. Online forums, support docs, and web apps make me happy too — I’d rather research the problem myself or manage my account if you give me the tools.

With that in mind, here are my ratings of several companies I’ve dealt with over the last year. Feel free to contribute your own ratings in the comments.

Both TiVo and Netflix posted interesting job openings this week…

First up is Netflix, who’s looking to hire an interface engineer. Based on the description it seems they’re interested in exploring Vista’s GUI functionality to possibly produce a front-end for on-line movie distribution. Keep in mind Vista will bundle Media Center Edition features… which currently include Xbox 360 streaming.

This research team will be investigating new ten-foot user interface models for browsing a huge catalog of movies on a on a TV. Rich interactivity will be key to collecting user tastes and preferences and helping the user find the right content easily. We will be exploring various technologies such as Windows Presentation Foundation, which means we are looking for someone able to pick up a new tools and execute quickly and effectively. (via Hacking Netflix)

And speaking of Windows, TiVo’s job opening prominently mentions Windows Media Video 9 (VC-1/WMV9) which both Blu-ray and HD-DVD support… and what a variety of current movie download services (Movielink, CinemaNow) utilize in conjunction with Microsoft DRM. MPEG-4 is also mentioned, a format many consider compressed enough for the possibility of wide-scale TiVo video downloads.

TiVo is seeking a manager for the Media Architecture team. This team is responsible for the real-time streaming functionality that drives the TiVo digital video recorder features: real-time record and playback of synchronized audio/video data.

• This person will have knowledge in at least one of the following areas: MPEG-2 video and systems, MPEG-1 audio (including MP3), or MPEG-4 Part 10 (H.264) video
• In addition, this person will have working experience in 3 of the following areas: VC-1, WMV9 and WMA, Dolby Digital (AC-3), network streaming audio and video, DVD playback and recording, digital right management (DRM) technologies

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