Netflix Shutting Down DVD Business After 25 Years

Netflix started out as a company that sold and rented DVDs by mail, a little known fact for most people who associate Netflix with video streaming. The popular video platform is now shutting down its original DVD business, DVD.com.

Netflix's announcement came ahead of this year's earnings report for the first quarter. Its DVD rental business won't immediately come to a halt, but instead it will be gradually phased out, with the final disc being shipped on September 29, 2023.

Netflix Bids Adieu to DVD.com

Netflix's journey started back in 1998 with its DVD-by-mail rentals and has shipped over 5.2 billion DVDs so far. The DVD rental service boasts of 40 million unique subscribers over the years.

However, its DVD business hasn't been doing too well in the past few years. According to reports, its revenue fell by a whopping 50 percent in 2022. Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos announced in a blog post, "After an incredible 25 year run, we've decided to wind down DVD.com later this year."

Sarandos added, "Our goal has always been to provide the best service for our members but as the business continues to shrink that's going to become increasingly difficult. So we want to go out on a high, and will be shipping our final discs on September 29, 2023."

The Netflix co-CEO stated, "From the beginning, our members loved the choice and control that direct-to-consumer entertainment offered: the wide variety of the titles and the ability to binge watch entire series."

Sarandos recalled the company's foray into the production of original shows, "DVDs also led to Netflix's first foray into original programming, with Red Envelope Entertainment titles including Sherrybaby and Zach Galifianakis Live at the Purple Onion."

The first DVD shipped by Netflix was the quirky movie Beetlejuice by Tim Burton. The company has since shipped more than 5.2 billion DVDs, with its most popular title being The Blind Side, starring Sandra Bullock.

Source: Netflix