Netflix Inc. announced its new partnership with Samsung Electronics Co. meant to offer consumers movies on their television sets directly from the Internet. Samsung’s devices will also be used to play movies encrypted on the high-definition Blu-ray format.

The electronics maker’s products are already available on the market and for now, users will have to connect to the Internet to download an application which will enable the compatibility with Netflix’s service. The upgrade can be downloaded from Samsung’s official Web site, by accessing the following address http://www.samsung.com/bluraysupport. The company announced that future versions will present a built-in access feature. Samsung agreed to enable the service on its $400 BD-P2500 and BD-P2550 Blu-ray disc players.

"In its new form, Samsung Blu-ray players become the ultimate content delivery box, combining on-demand access to movies and jaw-dropping Full HD viewing," said Reid Sullivan, Vice President of Marketing, Audio/Video & Imaging at Samsung Electronics America. "Samsung presents a new value proposition for Blu-ray players by positioning it as a portal to a world of engaging digital content, be it Blu-ray discs, movies from Netflix or other online content."

Netflix managed to make a name for itself by pioneering DVD rentals by mail, a service extremely appreciated by all of its users. The company is looking expand its area of activity and promote its new service, named Watch Instantly, which offers users the possibility to get full HD movies over the Internet. At the moment, the online service’s archives include only about 12,000 titles, which is considerably small compared to its collection of hundreds of thousands of movies.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed and the other Samsung products that will integrate Netflix’s services haven’t been named for now. Many analysts believe that future television sets will have such an Internet connection feature in their standard package, facilitating the access to these Web-based entertainment services. Considering the fact that Samsung is one of the major television makers, the long-term plan is clear, as the company is looking to get a head start in this new segment that has the potential to become extremely popular.

"Samsung has been at the forefront of innovation in consumer electronics and has established a market leadership position in Blu-ray and digital television," said Netflix Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer Reed Hastings. "We're excited about the upgraded Blu-ray disc players. Moreover, we look forward to working with Samsung in the years to come to deliver a variety of outstanding products on which consumers can watch movies delivered over the Internet from Netflix."

Netflix already signed similar deals with other companies and their products, which offer its Internet video service on Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360 videogame console and startup Roku Inc.’s set-top box.

The online rental business becomes more popular with each passing day, as customers find it easier to select their movies from the comfort of their own home and the service is also cheaper. Once the movie archive will be enlarged, the company expects a significant boost in it subscriber list.