Those of you who subscribe to Netflix, you might have some variation of the letter below.

Dear Brian,

We are separating unlimited DVDs by mail and unlimited streaming into two separate plans to better reflect the costs of each. Now our members have a choice: a streaming only plan, a DVD only plan, or both. Your current $14.99 a month membership for unlimited streaming and unlimited DVDs will be split into 2 distinct plans: Plan 1: Unlimited Streaming (no DVDs) for $7.99 a month Plan 2: Unlimited DVDs, 2 out at-a-time (no streaming) for $11.99 a month Your price for getting both of these plans will be $19.98 a month ($7.99 + $11.99). You don’t need to do anything to continue your memberships for both unlimited streaming and unlimited DVDs. These prices will start for charges on or after September 1, 2011. You can easily change or cancel your unlimited streaming plan, unlimited DVD plan, or both, by going to the Plan Change page in Your Account.

We realize you have many choices for home entertainment, and we thank you for your business. As always, if you have questions, please feel free to call us at 1-888-357-1516.

–The Netflix Team

According to Realseo, Netflix is hurting, both in terms of subscribers and stock price, but they seem to have taken this decline into account.  Their goal is to eventually move to a streaming-only service, though for now it appears that new releases tend to end up on DVD months before they are made available via streaming. I was considering canceling my account, but for the fact that my options are relatively few; though with a little research I learned that they are greater than I thought, though not necessarily enough for me to drop Netflix.

I could get an Hulu Plus account, if it weren’t for the fact that–despite being a ‘premium’ service–you still get commercials, though they are “limited,” which isn’t quite the same as “not at all.”  Hulu Plus is in 720p, while regular Hulu is standard definition, which is a good thing.

Then there’s their library, which isn’t as rich as that of Netflix, then there’s that part of the “Plus” in “Hulu Plus” is that it is available on devices other than your computer, which sounds more like a standard feature than any sort of perk.

Though there’s also Amazon, as well as Redbox (though Redbox shares a similarity with Blockbuster, namely the whole “brick and mortar” thing, which means that if you want the latest titles, and you’re receiving them by mail, you can exchange them at your nearest Blockbuster store. The problems with this is that, since many Blockbusters have closed, that may not be as easy as you’d think).

Which brings up the point that I am essentially lazy, and if I have to get off my butt to get titles, it isn’t going to happen all that much.

Though there’s always torrents, though I don’t trust them and don’t want to pick up any viruses (there is no such word as ‘virii,’ by the way) that I could potentially spread to my Windows friends.

As unenlightened as they are to be primarily Windows users in the first place;)

Though Hulu Plus seems to be considering a price change, from $9.95 to $4.95, which could mean that it could actually complement a Netflix streaming account, by filling holes in their product offerings.

And in case anyone is curious, I have kept my Netflix account, though only the streaming.