Netflix Goes Down, Apocalypse Ensues!

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Updated: Nearly 2 million new subscribers signed up for Netflix in the past quarter, but those subscribers are bound to be disappointed, as the subscription video company’s website and streaming service are down today.

If you visit the Netflix home page, it reads:

“We’re sorry, the Netflix website and the ability to instantly watch movies are both temporarily unavailable.



However, our shipping centers are continuing to send and receive DVDs so your order is in process as usual.



Our engineers are working hard to bring the site and ability to watch instantly back up as soon as possible. We appreciate your patience and, again, we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. If you need further assistance, please call us at 1-877-445-6064. “

Not just that, but the company’s streaming service is apparently unavailable from other connected devices, including the Sony PlayStation 3, Apple iPhone and iPad, based on our own tests.

There’s no word yet on what the cause of the outage is, although we have a request out to Netflix asking for more details and information on when the service is expected to come back online.

Update 12:25 PM PT: Aaaaaaaannnndd it’s back up. Word from a Netflix spokesperson is that the company is not commenting on the cause of the outage. So there.

Update 12:30 PM PT: Spoke too soon. Now we’re getting a more generic “Netflix Site Error” message:

“We were unable to process your request.

Please go to the Netflix home page by clicking the button below.”

Oh, if only I could!

Update 12:40 PM PT: Netflix returns, again. I will cease reloading the page for fear that I am the one breaking it, and just assume that the crisis has passed.

Update 12:55 PM PT: I wasn’t going to look, but the devil made me do it. Down again. Connection Reset. Oh Netflix, you are a cruel, cruel mistress.

Update 1:40 PM PT: C’mon, Netflix. Now you’re just lying to us.

Update 2:50 PM PT: This is Liz, giving Ryan’s refresh button a break. Netflix appears to be back up; however, it’s loading at a snail’s pace.

Update 3 PM PT: Liz again, because it’s down again. Oh, cruelest fate! Where am I going to get my daily 30 Rock fix?! Oh, yeah, Hulu.

Update 3:24 PM PT: Liz still. Netflix is now replying to Twitter complaints directly: “We’re aware of the problem & are working to fix it. Sorry for the inconvenience!” Meanwhile, I’ve been able to access the main menu screen a couple of times, but haven’t yet been able to play any titles. Attempts to do so kick me to the Site Error screen.

Hey, you ever see the movie Real Genius? That movie’s great. And if you’re in the U.S., you can watch it on Crackle right now.

Update 3:50 PM PT: Yep, Liz again. Holy cats, it might be back up! We’ve been able to load content on our computers, the PS3 and the iPad. Let’s see how long this lasts…

Update 4:50 PM PT: So our long national nightmare appears to be over; Netflix has been up for the last hour. Thanks for riding the wave with us, guys.

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