How Netflix Pivoted

Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph as a DVD rental service, Netflix bet on streaming in 2007 and on original content with House of Cards in 2013. Each pivot was contested internally and externally.

1. 1997DVD rental founded
2. 2007Streaming launched
3. 2011Qwikster split announced and reversed
4. 2013House of Cards launched, originals era begins
5. 2022Ad-supported tier introduced

Subscription streaming with proprietary content as the differentiator.

• - Self-disrupting DVDs to lead streaming
• - Funding originals years before competitors
• - Releasing entire seasons at once

• - Studio licensing leverage
• - Qwikster mistake
• - Subscriber growth slowdowns

• - Disrupt yourself before someone else does
• - Cultural memos can be strategy
• - Pivots survive when leadership owns them publicly

• - List 3 things you would not build if you started today
• - Sketch what a self-disruption would look like for your business