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The ‘net is currently all abuzz with speculation as to who might be the proud new papa to internet movie rental giant, Netflix.  We’re hearing Amazon being tossed about left and right as a suitor and a couple of people are even throwing Microsoft’s name into the ring.  There are obviously some pluses and minuses to either of those deals, should they occur.

Regardless, Amazon had to be happy with the fact that people are thinking they may be the winner, considering their stock prices took a nice jump yesterday after the rumor started going around about them possibly buying Netflix.  However, in this case, all that glitters isn’t exactly gold in regards to this potential buy-out.

What an Amazon-owned Netflix really means

If Amazon were to buy Netflix, more than likely, it would be costly—I don’t mean for Amazon, I mean for the consumer.  While a deal would bring a bigger selection due to Amazon’s vast library of over 40,000 movies in their on demand catalog, that selection would probably come with a not-so-nifty higher price tag.  Right now, Netflix tends to offer older movies and those more obscure titles.  Amazon, on the other hand, streams many new releases as soon as they are released.  I don’t really see Amazon offering its selection for the less than $10 Netflix charges; expect to shell out more for that monthly subscription.

Another thing to consider is while initially there would probably be a boom when it comes to getting your physical discs even more quickly since Amazon seems to have warehouses everywhere, what might eventually occur is that physical discs would eventually simply disappear altogether.  That is not good for those folks who actually enjoy getting actual DVDs to pop in a player, and not just stream them.

With all that Amazon already has on its plate, they could end up acquiring Netflix without doing all the cool things they could with it.  Netflix could get lost in the Kindle/mass marketplace shuffle. 

Microflix?

Then we have uber-giant Microsoft.  Are they also a contender in the battle to buy Netflix as some rumors suggest?  And if they did purchase Netflix, what then?  Well, let’s look at the fact that we already have a very nice partnership between Netflix and XBox Live, which lets users watch TV shows and movies on the 360.  And according to sources close to Microsoft, this partnership is “en fuego” (which very loosely translated means “on fire”).

And it is apparently so on fire, that the president of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices division (which includes the XBox division) has been in pow-wows with the CEO and co-founder of Netflix to try to see what else they can do to “expand their current partnership.”  Hmm.  Obviously, an acquisition would be a much bigger move. 

The deal would definitely give a more strongly defined video strategy that many seem to think Microsoft lacks and Microsoft has been trying to build better ties in the entertainment arena for a while now.

Is Netflix doomed?

Many experts feel that the current business model of Netflix, regardless of who they are acquired by, is doomed.  They argue that streaming is the wave of the future.  Perhaps going with Microsoft would give them a leg up if this is the case.

Because of this fact, even though I can see Amazon being the one to purchase Netflix, I actually think they would have a better shot at a really strong, innovative, successful future if Microsoft did step up to the auction block and buy them.  I can see it now….Microflix.  It’s got a certain ring.