As Reuters reported, the @NetflixHelps Twitter account broke the bad news to PlayBook and BlackBerry fans in a tweet on Thursday. In a follow-up tweet, Netflix tried to soften the blow writing, "While we don't support BlackBerry today, our plans can change."
@jr4941 We don’t have any current plans to support Blackberry devices, incluing Playbook.— Netflix (@Netflixhelps) Feb. 24, 2012
Generally we want to be on every screen that’s relevant to you. While we don’t support Blackberry today, our plans can change. Thanks all!— Netflix (@Netflixhelps) February 24, 2012
The announcement comes just days after the PlayBook 2.0 software was released. PlayBook 2.0 added a number of new features, including native email and calendar features, better media support and enhanced social media integration.
As Mashable's Editor-in-Chief Lance Ulanoff noted in his review, however, the additions to PlayBook 2.0 aren't enough for the the tablet to replace the iPad, Nook Tablet or Kindle Fire in the eyes of most consumers.
PlayBook's biggest problem continues to be a lack of quality third-party apps. More apps are showing up in the BlackBerry App World all the time and RIM has made it easy for Android developers to package their apps to work on the PlayBook. Still, the feedback we consistently hear from developers is that trying to support the BlackBerry or the BlackBerry PlayBook becomes too complex. Should it be a native app or an Android port? Should the developer try to support both PlayBook 2.0 and BlackBerry OS 7, or just choose one?
Making matters more difficult is the fact that BlackBerry 10 smartphones are expected to launch this fall. BlackBerry 10 is going to be very similar to PlayBook 2.0 (they're both based on QNX), and we expect RIM to merge the two OSes the way that Apple has with iOS. Still, for some developers, this has led to a "wait and see" approach before making a decision about BlackBerry.
For Netflix, a company that has a vested interest on supporting as many platforms as possible, the lack of plans for BlackBerry and PlayBook likely means that its own research has shown that the market demand exceeds the amount of work required for a port. Still, who knows? Maybe with BlackBerry 10, Netflix will re-evaluate some things.