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End of an era: Netflix is ending mailed DVD service after 25 years

A Netflix Red Envelope | Image credit: Netflix

Netflix has announced that it will ship out its last DVD on September 29, transitioning existing DVD subscribers to streaming-only subscriptions.

On Tuesday, Netflix announced that it would end its DVD subscription, which allowed users to rent DVDs via the mail system.

Founded on August 29, 1997, Netflix started as a mail-based rental system for DVDs. Users would receive a DVD in the mail, watch it, and then return the DVD via a prepaid envelope.

It wasn't until a decade later, in 2007, that the company would introduce streaming media and video-on-demand.

Now, the company is ending its 25-year-long DVD subscription service. Netflix will ship out its final red envelope on September 29, and subscribers will have until October 27 to return any discs in their possession.

Those with a streaming and DVD subscription will be converted to streaming-only services. All users with DVD subscriptions will be canceled automatically.

Subscribers who have more questions are encouraged to visit the Netflix DVD FAQ.

DVD and Blu-Ray sales have been on the decline for several years, while the U.S. streaming market has continued to grow.

According to data analytics company Kantar, 89% of U.S. households stream video content into their homes. In addition, the average household now subscribes to 5.4 different streaming services.



15 Comments

DAalseth 6 Years · 3067 comments

Honestly I thought they had phased that out a few years ago. 

foregoneconclusion 12 Years · 2857 comments

Kind of what I figured would happen after they spent so much time hyping the "25 years!" aspect to the remaining subscribers (like myself). Ultimately, the disc-rental-through-the-mail idea was one of the best ideas to come out of the original 1990's internet boom. 

lkrupp 19 Years · 10521 comments

BiC said:
Darn it! Now I have to go back to Torrents. Sad Sad Day.  What am I going to do with all my computers with a DVD reader.

Are you proud of being a common thief? You’d rent a DVD but steal a stream?

ronn 20 Years · 688 comments

Like others, I thought they ended the mailed DVD service years ago. I remember my twin and I were the first in our circles to try it. Oy, the times we held on to a DVD forever, trying to find time to watch with our busy schedules. Took me forever to try streaming with Netflix.

geekmee 13 Years · 647 comments

For those of us who had there 70th birthday this year….

There’s a joke in here somewhere.