Video distributor Netflix plans to expand its streaming service to Apple Macintosh computers by year’s end, the company said in a blog posting.

Netflix, which is facing competition from a slew of new set-top movie boxes from Vudu, Apple and others, has been seeking to expand beyond its video-by-mail roots.

To do that, the Los Gatos, California, company has expanded to a variety of platforms. For instance, the company cut a deal with Microsoft that will let Xbox 360 owners who subscribe to Netflix and the Xbox Live Gold service watch movies streamed through the gaming console. That service is scheduled to start later this fall.

The posting on the Netflix blog also announced that Netflix had reached an agreement with movie channel Starz to add about 1,000 movies that subscribers can watch on their PCs or via the Netflix set-top player made by Roku or a new Blu-ray Network player made by South Korean manufacturer LG.

In late morning trading Thursday, shares of Netflix fell $1.35, or 4.5 percent, to $28.69.

In September, Netflix announced deals with CBS and Disney-ABC television to add content such as “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” and “Hannah Montana” to its streaming service.

In August, Netflix reported a 4 percent increase in second quarter net income to $26.6 million, or $.42 cents per share, versus $25.6 million, or $.37 in the prior year’s period.