The netflix conundrum: what's a company to do?

Ok, so there's no way around it. Losing a million customers in a few months is not a good thing. That's what has reportedly happened to Netflix after they announced that they planned to separate their DVD rental business from their online streaming business.

It wasn't so much that customers didn't like the idea that they'd have to pay separately, or that they'd have to use two websites for what they used to be able to do in one. What really annoyed customers was how the situation was handled.

Instead of introducing the idea to customers gently and then transitioning slowly into the change, Netflix announced the change abruptly — Netflix would now handle only DVD rental and a new company, Quickster, would be created for streaming content. Period. Done deal. Customers felt ...  > Read more.

Speaking of social media, here are some surprising statistics.

• Social networking site usage grew 88% among Internet users age 55-64 between 2009 and 2010, and rose from 9% usage to 43% usage between 2008 and 2010.

• Friday at 4pm is the most retweeted day and time of the week and is thus believed to be the best time to post a blog post.

• Americans spend three times as much time on social media as on email.

• Although a larger number of women view online video on social networks and blogs, men are the heaviest online video users overall streaming more videos and watching them longer.

(Sources: Marketingcharts, Nielsen.)

Insight180 news.

Insight180 has officially survived the 2011 Ellicott City flood. Thanks to a great landlord who did a thorough clean-up, replaced water and mud-soaked drywall, and helped us store our furnishings, as well as many tireless friends and colleagues who helped us move out and back in, we re-occupied our office again about two weeks ago. We are so grateful to those of you who helped us out with your strong muscles and reassuring sentiments. Come by and see us. We are sparkling clean and and in tip-top shape once again.