I remember a specific day when I was anticipating my latest installment of “Alias” via Netflix, only to receive a sheet of paper with my mailing info on it—with no disc attached.

When I contacted the company, they told me that often their mailers get mangled in the post office’s sorting machines. The disc was returned to Netflix, and I had a replacement in hand a day or two later.

Now it looks as though the post office is tired of the mailing mishaps, and wants Netflix to pay for it. Wired says that the USPS wants Netflix to pay an extra 17 cents for every envelope, to cover the $61.5 million they’re estimating that said problems will cause over the next two years.

The extra costs will crush Netflix’s monthly income, which can only mean that the pain will be passed on to its subscribers. It’s also possible that they will also redesign its distinctive red mailers, although I have to imagine that will cost us extra as well.

Rachel Cericola - Contributing Writer

Over the past 15 years, Rachel Cericola has covered entertainment, web and technology trends. Check her out at www.rachelcericola.com.