Today I’m really excited to be telling you about a package designed especially for anyone who just wants to stream films & TV episodes.
We think that the combination of renting DVDs, Blu-ray and Games by Post, together with thousands of titles to watch instantly is just about the best value entertainment around. But we also know that some of you just want the instant satisfaction of streaming.
That is why we have created a new package – it’s unlimited, it’s instant, and you can stream in loads of different ways: on your PC or laptop, via internet-connected TVs, on a PS3™, an iPad, and – now – on the Xbox 360.
And it comes at the special launch price of only £4.99 per month. Which is fantastic value for money and just the latest step in our ongoing mission to provide you with convenient ways to watch at an affordable price.
How do you get this streaming only package?
Paying customers: go to your My account page, click the ‘Change package’ link, and choose the ‘LOVEFiLM Instant’ option to switch your package (the change takes affect once you’ve returned your discs).
New customers: if you’re already on a 14 day free trial, you can use the same process (again, the change takes affect once you’ve returned any discs you have at home).
Anyone on a promotional offer of more than a 14 day free trial: please contact us here by email or phone, and we’ll switch your package manually. (This link to contact us is also good if you’ve tried to Change package via your My account page, but haven’t been able to make it work.)
Not yet a customer? Sign up here, and select the ‘LOVEFiLM Instant’ option.
We’re always looking for ways to enhance and upgrade and tweak the LOVEFiLM service, so we made it happen as quickly as we could. There’s still a little bit of ’smoothing out’ work left to do on the website, but the streaming only package is live and available, and we figured that was the most important thing.
So if you decide to switch or sign-up for it, we hope you enjoy our unlimited streaming only package and, in these austere times, enjoy paying a little bit less each month too.
Jim Buckle, Chief Operating Officer
I’ve just upgraded my package to LOVEFiLM Instant and I have noticed that the streaming quality is much better than the package I was previously on, is this true?
Hi Michael. There is no difference by package but it may vary by device. We use ‘adaptive streaming’ on the Xbox, Desktop, iPad and we plan to bring it to our other platforms soon. This allows us to offer a much higher top bit-rate of 2000kbit/sec with the assurance that those on lower speed connections will be automatically switched to a lower bit-rate. The overall impact to our customers should be reduced buffering and higher picture quality as the majority of broadband connections can now support the 2000kbit/sec bandwidth needed. I’m pleased to hear that you are seeing an improvement in quality.
One word to describe this: AWESOME!
Hi Jim,
I’ve just signed up to try via the Xbox 360. I just want to ask about picture quality. I have a 20Mb internet connection (plenty for HD) but the movies only stream in SD? Do all the LoveFilm movies stream only in SD?
Thanks.
Hi Samil. At the moment we only have movies in SD. However, since a large number of broadband connections in UK now support sustained HD delivery, it is certainly in our plans to provide HD in due course. Also the use of adaptive streaming technology means we can safely offer HD to users knowing the stream quality will adapt if the connection changes during delivery.
Is there a timeframe in getting Streaming onto Android?
Ever since the Silverlight switch, I can no longer stream through the browser on my Android tablet like I was able to previously.
It’s great that devices like the Xbox are being included but at the loss of other devices is atrocious.
Not happy. Would have been ecstatic if new device streaming was made available in time with the release of the new site.
Hi Mojahid. Unfortunately the move from Flash wasn’t within our control and I fully understand your frustration. Certainly we have no desire to make it harder for customers to use our services. For many reasons we aren’t in a position to publish future launch plans but our overall goal is to be on as many devices as possible, as quickly as possible.
On my xbox and the website it says £4.99 is a special launch price, I was just wondering when well the ‘launch’ be over and what will the price be then?
Will the price go up after a while?
Hi Adam and Callum
Our future plans on pricing are to some extent commercially sensitive but also its something we will keep under review depending on customer feedback around the service and how much great content we are able to keep on adding. Our goal is to provide a service which customers will consider to be excellent value for money so that lots of people can use and enjoy it – particulary in these austere times! The lowest price point which combines unlimited streaming (which we are now calling LOVEFiLM Instant) with our traditional DVD service (LOVEFiLM by Post) is now £7.99, so you can expect it to be less than that. Whatever we do, we will be sure to give plenty of notice to those customers who have already joined.
Hi Jim
I am looking to subscribe to one of the unlimited streaming packages but cannot see the £7.99 package (unlimited streaming and dvds in the post) which you mention in the above post.
Could you tell me more about this package and where to find it on your website?
Thanks
Hi Steven. If you are not yet a customer, then follow this link:
https://www.lovefilm.com/signup/1?promotion_code=LFINSTANT
If you are already a customer, then go to ‘upgrade your package’ under the Rental List tab and you will see it listed there.
Failing that, please call our customer services line and they will be happy to guide you through the process.
What level of films are available on this package. I noticed when looking through online viewing that there is a category that says, “included in packages over £5.99″ Seen as this is only £4.99 am i right in assuming not all films will be included to watch with just your monthly subscriptions?
Hi Craig. Good question! In my original post I mentioned that we still have some ’smoothing out’ to do on the website – we were very keen to get our new Xbox service out as soon as possible so that customers could enjoy great movies, instantly, over Christmas.
This is one of the rough edges that needs dealing with. Prior to launching this new £4.99 package, £5.99 was the cheapest price point at which you could get some digital content – 3 DVD rentals and 2 hours of streaming. The latter package is aimed at customers who mostly want to watch a few DVDs each month and can have a ‘taster’ of the Instant service. If you just want unlimited, instant movie watching, then this £4.99 package is the one for you. Though, of course, we’d love you to try one of our combined packages which give you LOVEFiLM by post and unlimited LOVEFiLM Instant, from £7.99 – the best of both worlds!
Is the launch price only £5 a month for the first few months or will it stay £5 a month forever if I sign up now?
I have just read other comments and seen answer to my question! Sorry
No problem Robert. Hope you are enjoying the service and find it good value for money.
What is the choice of films on lovefilm instant?
Is it just the same as the “with package” selection that I currently get with my DVD & streaming subscription or will it include those titles which for me currently are pay per view?
Hi Rob. Yes it is the content showing on the website as ‘with package’. Though as mentioned by me in another reply, we don’t yet have the full set of content on all devices, although we are working hard to rectify that situation. In addition, we are continually adding new content to service and we have some great stuff coming up over the next few months. Unfortunately, unlike with DVDs, studio licence agreements do not allow us to include ‘pay per view’ content (usually the very newest releases) within a subscription. Also, at the moment, these titles are only available via the website.
The price is very good for unlimited streaming.
There doesnt seem to be many films on the xbox compared to going on the pc, why is that? shouldnt they both be the same?
Also is the dispute with Universal pictures going to be sorted out any time soon as there are A LOT of there movies I wish to see, and I think a lot of other customers would like to see this resolved also
Andy
Hi Andy. In due course we would expect to have all subscription titles available on all devices. We are working hard to make sure that is the case. We share your frustration regarding Universal and we continue to try and find a solution that works for all parties – not least, our customers.
Great news, thanks for the reply.
Andy, I followed your instructions to change my package but the Lovefilm instant option isn’t available. There is only: lightuse, unlimited and film/game. How can i change my subscription?
Thanks
Stephen
Hi Stephen. You should find the LOVEFiLM Instant package as the first one listed under Unlimited packages. I can see it on my account! If for any reason you can’t see it there, please call our Customer Service line on 0844 482 0123 and someone will be happy to help.
Hi, Like others, I also have the problem that switching to instant isn’t showing up as an option on my account page. I’ve followed all the instructions and can see other packages, but not this one. Is it because I’m already on the £4:99 package for light use and therefore can’t switch to another of the same price? Desperate to know please!
Hi Kathryn. I will check this out for you and post back here tomorrow with an answer as you should be able to see the package.
Hi Kathryn. If you are on a free trial, you may not be able to see this package. If you contact our Customer Service team on 0844 482 0123 they will be able to do it for you, or else you will be able to do online it at the end of your free trial. If you are not on a free trial, you should see this package so if you still can’t, please contact our CS team, because you should be able to!
This is a fantastic offer. I have just aquired a Sony SMP-N100
Will I be able to gain access via this method?
Hi Rob. Yes you should be able to access our service via your Sony Media Player. If you have any problems please call our Customer Service line on 0844 482 0123 and someone will be happy to help.
I am a PS3 owner and really believe that the future for rentals is in streaming over the Internet and can combat piracy if you can deliver on service. The only downside currently is the quality (SD not HD) and lack of films choice compared with postal rentals.
I have a decent broadband connection so should be able to stream in HD which I know you will be offering (shortly I hope). Have you considered the possibility to download films directly to the PS3 hard drive or use as part of the buffering to ensure that we have smooth playback? DRM should cover any issues about storage on hard disk and this applies to all media storage platforms i.e. PC.
Can you also confirm that you plan to also support 1080P HD with HD audio? Subtitles would also be a great addition.
Darren
Hi Darren. Thanks for your feedback. We are not in a position to share specific plans at this stage – not least because we are continually re-working priorities – but we are always looking to improve the quality of our service. We are balancing the need to make the service accessible to as many people as possible (and so have just launched on Xbox for example) with improving the quality for everyone. HD, subtitles and download are all areas that we are aware of customers wanting.
Can I just say, I have the unlimited streaming package and love it. The only problem I would say is that you don’t cater very well to children. LoveFilm’s US offering has some great shows for kids and they even have an area specifically for chidlren. The online streaming for children on LoveFilm sucks at best. It would be nice for you guys to work on that and provide some great kids shows and movies and maybe even a special section of the site so kids can browse for thier movies safetly.
Hi Matthew. Pleased to hear you are enjoying the service and thanks for your feedback about kids content. We have a range of children’s content which spans pre-school (Fireman Sam, Bob the Builder, Thomas, Pingu) through to primary (Ben 10, Wallace and Gromit) and early teen (Britannia High). This totals around 600 episodes currently. However, we plan to add more content during 2012. You make a good point about a separate pin-protected children’s section and this is certainly something we would like to have in the future.
Hi,
Are there any plans to offer an unlimited package without streaming?
Hi Andrew. We prefer to keep future plans on pricing and package confidential for competitive reasons, however there are no immediate plans. Our unlimited packages, with streaming, are cheaper now than they used to be without streaming, and so we feel they offer exceptional value. However, we will continue to keep this under review.
Hi,
We have a PS3, XBOX 360 and IPad in the house. Is there a limit to the number of devices that can be used with one account?
If there is a limit which device is recommended PS3 or XBOX?
Regards.
Hi Paul. Currently there is a limit of three, non-PC devices so you are fine with what you have.
Loving the look of this, and sorry if this has already been answered but what about content not available to watch online? Is the only way to get those still to get discs in the post?
Hi Cathy. The short answer is ‘yes’. As mentioned elsewhere, it is much more difficult (and much more expensive) to get the distribution rights for digital content, compared to DVDs, so whilst we will continue to increase the size of our streaming catalogue it will never be as complete as the DVD catalogue. Think of the Instant service like a super-charged TV channel, with lots of great content to watch at any time, and think of the DVD/ Blu-ray service as a library where you can usually find anything you want. In addition, for more recent titles, studios tend to only make them available digitally on a pay per view basis, so you can buy these from us via the website but will not find them available as part of your subscription.
Hi, are the technical streaming problems going to be resolved soon on Samsung tv’s?, as most of us have received very little or no streaming service now since October 2011!.
I really need to know because this will be the deciding factor as to whether or not i’ll be continuing my subscription beyond January!.
Thanks.
Hi guys, as last post….are the technical streaming problems going to be resolved soon on Samsung tv’s? I have just set-up a Samsung 46D8000 and although the TV is fantastic, there doesn’t seem to be a connection between the TV and LoveFilm? After calling customer services they didn’t seem to know where the problem was?
Hi Alan and Pennydroppedyet. We are aware of a problem for some customers using Samsung TVs although the majority of customers are streaming successfully. We expect the situation to be resolved when we replace Flash later this week. If you are still having problems after this change, please contact us again.
Hi, I recently swapped to this package from a bigger package as I now use my xbox alot and prefer to decide what to watch then and there, but I am yet to try out my new package as my xbox is telling me lovefilm on xbox is down at the moment? Is this going to be a recurring problem? Any ideas on when it will be back up so i can try out my new package? Thanks
Hi Joy. There’s been a handful of short outages but if you are seeing this all the time I suggest calling our Customer Services helpline as we have thousands of customers using the Xbox service successfully every day. Remember you can also use the service on your PC/ laptop – although much better on your TV screen of course.
I’ve just started a free trial and am finding the search facility a little frustrating. I’ve managed to set my Sony TV for streaming, but trawling though the titles to find something I want to watch is putting me off.
Would it be possible to somehow create a personal viewing list of streaming films, so that I can add titles while I’m browsing the website, then pick them later on to watch – either on the laptop or TV?
In general, I find the search facility clunky, with the same titles appearing multiple times in different formats and TV series not appearing in any kind of logical order (seeing every single TV episode listed is frustrating – any chance of subfolders by season?). Maybe I just need to practise more!
Hi Fenny. First of all, apologies for the problems that you are having. The good news is that nearly all the issues that you have identified are fixable and will be in due course. However, we cannot change the basic layout of content on the Sony Bravia as this is pre-set by Sony. A digital watch list and better presentation of TV content are both being developed. One thing to be aware of is that the way titles are licensed to us by studios for streaming means that sometimes titles are only available for a limited period of time.
Hi Jim,
Thanks for the response. I did wonder whether the content layout on the Bravia was a Sony format, as it seems the same across all the different types of additional content.
I spent some time playing around over the weekend and seem to have worked out how to get better search results – although I did get some weird things thrown up for some titles!
As a total non sequitor, I just want to big up the fantastic “Tucker & Dale vs Evil”. I’m not exactly sure how I came to add it to my watch list, but I loved it and I’m quite happy to have to wait another few days for the next disk of Six Feet Under just to have seen it.
Just to clarify, the £4.99, if I were to sign up, would not including new releases ie. the “pay for content” listed. The likes of “Raise of the Planet of the Apes”, “Super8″, “Captain America” etc. Rather, back catalogue, older titles.
Hi Adam. Any title which has a ‘pay per view’ price against it will not be included in this package, only those shown as included ‘with package’. The movie studios will not make these titles available for inclusion within a subscription package.
I try to use your service on Xbox and it’s down so often I wonder what the point is.
Also the selection is TERRIBLE. You talk about having 50 films of each genre, but they all crossover. When is the service going to improve?
Hi Chris. I am sorry to hear that you are experiencing problems. We have had one or two teething issues but these should not happen on an ongoing basis. We are continually adding new content so I hope that you will find films (and in due course TV series) that you want to watch.
Hi. When will you be providing a link for Apple TV. I’d be happy to stream through my iPad app via AirPlay but this is disabled. It’s really quite frustrating. I have a Samsung blu ray with anynet which I can stream through but that’s connected to another tv.
Hi Gunther. We don’t publish plans for device launches. Our goal is to be on as many devices as possible but at the same time we will focus on those which are mostly widely used first. Hopefully you can get good use via the iPad and Samsung in the meantime.
Any plans to have a Wii channel so that we can access this content through the Wii (8+ million in UK)?
Hi Jon. For commercial reasons, I can’t comment on individual platforms. Our goal is to be on as many devices as possible as soon as possible. This requires agreement with the manufacturer and completion of technical development. Within these constraints, we will prioritise those that have the most users.
If I try the luv film instant and decide I don’t like it, can I change back to my old package?
Hi Gary. Short answer – Yes!
You talk about adaptive streaming technology but what is wrong with letting the users decide if they want to watch it in low or high quality?? I get about 3mb BB which is not great but I like high quality (as we all do) and would rather have the option to select high quality then Pause the film and let it buffer for a minute. I am watching a movie (The Black Book) now on my 20″ monitor (via my pc) full screen I Paused (even though it did not need it) but the quality is very low. Why not give us the option? Cheers
Hi Cam. I hear what you are saying but ultimately we can’t be all things to all people and whilst this is your preference most people will want this decision taken for them and receive the best interupted experience. The more options we give, the more complex the service becomes to use.
Hi there, Can you please tell me when the TV series content will be available to stream via my Bravia TV. Also is there specific day/s when new content is added?
Hi Paul. Since you wrote this, you will hopefully have already seen some additional content added and there is more to come. There is no particular day for new content to be added – just as soon as we have it ready.
I’m currently on one of the DVD+streaming packages, and had been hoping you’d launch a package like this for some time. Streaming certainly feels like a win-win – without the overhead of postage costs, I’d be surprised if most people haven’t made the switch in a year or so.
I would switch to the new package immediately, but it seems the online player now requires silverlight. Given my devices are linux or android based, I don’t know what to do. Should I start a ‘holiday’ and start paying again when LF add support for these platforms?
Hi Ben. Our goal is to make the service as widely available as possible but at the same time we have to prioritise which devices we develop first. At the moment we are available on XboX, PS3, Sony Bravia, LG TV/BluRay, Samsung TV/BluRay and iPad. We will continue to add to this line up. Unfortunately the switch to Silverlight was beyond our control and required by the content owners on whom we depend.
You know, this would have interested me last week, but after seeing two films become unavailable from “Watch Online” this week, it doesn’t interest me at all. I’d rather pay a quid extra and switch to Netflix because they stream more than films to internet devices like TVs and PS3s, and because I assume that they will not only expand available titles but *maintain* them in their streaming catalogue. I had absolutely no idea that you routinely removed titles “Watch Online” until this week, when after sitting down with guests to watch “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” I discovered it was no longer available. So we watched “Tell No One” instead. Great film! I figured my parents would like it and decided to watch it with them when they came around at lunch time today. But what happened? You guessed it. That has gone from “Watch Online” too… just two days after I discovered it.
I realise I can order the discs, but it would use up slots allocated to other films that I haven’t seen yet. If you must remove films according to some unknown, arbitrary criteria then at least provide the dates they’re going to drop out of the catalogue so as not to inconvenience your paying customers. Plenty of us plan ahead what movies we’re going to watch, so it’s incredibly disappointing that this happens. If the BBC can tell us when iPlayer content will become unavailable for streamed viewing, why can’t LoveFilm?
Hi Lee. First of all, apologies that you have had a disappointing experience with our service. I am sure you are right that Netflix will add to their catalogue and likewise you can expect us to be doing the same – most recently we have begun to add new TV content with series such as Lost. Some content is only licensed to us by the studios for a limited period of time so this has to be taken down and replaced by other new titles coming through. This is not always the case but unfortunately it is a feature of this type of service and you will find the same experience with some titles on Netflix. You are right, however, that we could improve how we communicate this to customers and this is something we are currently looking at.
Hi, I wanted to ask a question about the streaming service. I have a Sony bluray player with which I stream movies, and most recently tv series. However when I have a look on the lovefilm website I see that certain shows are available, ie blackadder, the mighty boosh, yet they are not available on my device. Why is this?
Hi Vincent. This content should be available for your very soon. For the timebeing you will see these as ‘collections’ – when you come to the home page of our service on Sony you will see them as you scroll down. Some of the TV content is there already and more should be arriving shortly.
Hi Jim, I’d like to add my request for Apple TV support. I’m trying the Netflix free trial at the moment and their movie selection seems vastly inferior to yours. However your lack of Apple TV support is a bit of a deal breaker. AirPlay from the iPad app would be a good start!
Got my fingers crossed.
Hi Ben. Thanks for your comment regarding our movie selection. As mentioned elsewhere, we don’t comment on specific device plans. However, we are looking at the AirPlay issue. It was originally disabled because earlier versions of the Apple operating system did not provide sufficient levels of encryption. We are on the case with this one so hopefully it can be addressed soon.
why do you only stream older films and not new releases ? i would rather pay a little extra and be able to watch old and new films thats why i left netflix they have the same problem !
Hi Stewart. We do make new release titles available to stream via our website on a pay per view basis but the major film studios do not licence new releases to be available within a subscription. Studios make content available in different ways to different providers at different times and at different prices, starting from when a film is in cinema through to when it ends up on free TV. This is why we are unable to offer the full range of content available for streaming that you can get via DVD rental. It is one reason why we will continue to offer customers the option to combine physical and digital rental in one package, for the forseeable future.
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