The end of the writers’ strike isn’t the only inflection point Ted Sarandos is marking this week.
“Today, after 25 years, we ship our last DVD,” the Netflix co-CEO posted this morning on social media. “Those iconic red envelopes were so loved that we shipped more than 5 billion of them to cities and towns, big and small that otherwise would have had no access to the variety of films and television shows we made available,” pitchman supreme Sarandos add of the shuttering of the service.
“It was a huge honor to join the incredible DVD team in Fremont this week to thank them for being a part something that changed people’s lives,” the exec also wrote Friday morning, echoing the company’s Sunset Blvd’s billboard proclaiming “DVDs will always be in our DNA.” – check out Sarandos’ IG post below.
The very last DVD that Netflix mailed out was a copy of the Coen Brothers’ 2010 version of True Grit and its famous lines of “There is nothing free except the Grace of God. You cannot earn that or deserve it.”
Making the leap to streaming in 2007 and original programming in 2013, the company announced back in April that it would be discontinuing the practice of sending out DVDs – which were simply making almost no money for the company.
Indictive of the vast shifts in media over the last decade, Netflix’s DVD revenue was over $1 billion as recently as 2012. By last year, it was under $150 million
“In 1998, we delivered our first DVD,” Netflix pointed out in a blog post that went up Friday too. “This morning, we shipped our last.”
“For 25 years, we redefined how people watched films and series at home and shared the excitement as they opened their mailboxes to our iconic red envelopes. It’s the end of an era, but the DVD business built our foundation for the years to come – giving members unprecedented choice and control, a wide variety of titles to choose from and the freedom to watch as much as they want.”
“Today, we wanted to take the opportunity to thank you for watching,” the global streamer stated – with a throwback packed commemorative video:
Now available to stream in 190 countries, Netflix started its DVD business back in the Clinton Era with some “Showtime!” The very first disc the Reed Hasting founded company sent out was a copy of the Tim Burton directed and Michael Keaton starring Beetlejuice.
FYI – The last DVDs sent out today must be returned by October 27.
See Ted Sarandos full posting on Instagram today: