Netflix might be planning to bring its "Watch Instantly" feature to new devices soon. Currently built in to several products, like Sony HDTVs, and very popular on the Xbox 360, the feature lets subscribers watch any of thousands of movies in the Netflix library on their TVs. There are no physical discs; the videos stream via Web connection.

And according to Afterdawn.com, which quotes unnamed executives familiar with the situation, the Nintendo Wii and Apple's iPhone platform are next on the list. The Wii is a fairly obvious choice as Nintendo has been pushing streaming or downloadable content since the console launched a year and a half ago.

But the iPhone is something else. Apple--likely at the behest of AT&T--has kept much streaming video from the iPhone. Afterdawn points out that the streaming would likely be via Wi-Fi, only to keep bandwidth on the already overloaded network down.

What's interesting is the lack of mention of the Apple TV. Sure, the iPhone and iPod Touch are much more popular devices, but the Apple TV--which already features streaming media via YouTube and the iTunes Movie Store--seems like a much more natural choice. People want to watch the movies on their TVs.
Apple wants you to rent or buy from iTunes and has never been happy with an "all you can eat" subscription service. But if Netflix can convince Jobs and company that "Watch Instantly" will be OK on the iPhone, then it can argue the same for the Apple TV.