Netflix Launches Watch Instantly Service on PS3 (Updated)

Sony’s Playstation Blog has announced that the highly praised Netflix Watch Instantly video streaming service offered by the mail-order DVD rental company will be available for the console next month, following months of cryptic speculation and even triggering competitive bluster by Microsoft who initially claimed an exclusive on the offering.

Netflix has setup a dedicated portal for the new service, which will initially require a Blu-Ray disc to be sent out as it takes advantage of the BD-Live network connection and is not tied to a Playstation Network account unlike the Live Gold account requirement on the Xbox 360.

Future plans call for an embedded application similar to the Xbox 360 version sometime in the future.

Update: Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter has noted in a statement that the Blu-ray disc required for Netflix playback on the PS3 may circumvent exclusivity clauses instituted by Microsoft’s agreement.

“We believe that the exclusive arrangement limits Netflix’s ability to appear on the ‘dashboard’ for the PS3 or the Wii.”

Pachter also believes Netflix streaming will expand to Nintendo’s console next year.

“We anticipate that a similar arrangement will be announced for the Wii in the next 12 months.”