Netflix + Microsoft = Scam?

Many people have heard the news that Netflix and Microsoft have announced their partnership, offering to stream Netflix videos for anyone with an Xbox Live Gold membership. They said that Live Gold members will have "Netflix access for no additional cost," but what about those of us that actually want to take advantage of the entire Netflix library? As you'll see, the partnership has figured out a way to score a quick buck or two (million) on unsuspecting consumers.

Disclaimer: As you will see below, if you follow the steps below with Internet Explorer as your only browser, you will no longer be able to sign up for a $4.99 plan from Netflix if you follow the steps below. You have been warned!

See It in Action:

• Step 1: Go to Netflix.com. If you haven't been on the xbox.com site, your window should appear like the one in the link: an advertisement with plans starting from $4.99 on the front page.
• Step 2: Go to the Xbox Live Netflix Teamup page and scroll down until you see a big red button saying "Sign up for Netflix here!" Sounds tempting, doesn't it? Click it. This will bring you back to the Netflix registration page...
• Step 3: ...with an image saying "Plans from $8.99". Strange. Navigate back to the Netflix Home Page and you'll see exactly the same page you were at in Step 1, with one small difference... $4/month.
• Step 4: Think it was only a cookie or something? Go into IE's Tools > Internet Options menu, click "Delete Browsing History", and when prompted, click "Delete All". Refresh the page and, lo and behold, the price is still $8.99.

Still not convinced of some kind of conspiracy? Try the above in Firefox, and the price will revert back to $4.99 after going through Tools > Clear Private Data and refreshing the page!

Pissed off? I know I am. Let Netflix know; they've been pretty responsive in the past. I would also suggest getting a hold of Microsoft Support somehow... but we all know that would be pretty useless.