Roll the credits: Netflix is sending out its final DVD rental discs today
As of today, Netflix has officially shut down the service of publishing physical discs of movies for subscribers to watch.
As you may recall, this is how Netflix started way back in 1998: as a DVD-by-mail service, long before streaming was ever an option for watching movies (and TV shows).
But after a quarter century of distributing DVDs to customers — and shipping some five billion discs, as of 2019, and no doubt more since — the service has officially closed. While this isn’t a surprise since Netflix let us know this was happening earlier this year (in April), it’s still a memorable day.
So the iconic DVDs with red envelopes are no longer there, and the last discs are literally going out today (and subscriptions are automatically canceled). Viewers have until October 27 to return their last batch of DVDs, but as we previously reported, some subscribers will be able to keep the last disc delivery (which is a pretty cool parting gift).
In the future, however, these people will have to stream content if they want to continue with Netflix (and they may want to peruse our best Netflix shows and best Netflix movie guides to see what’s out there).
Analysis: Stopped drives had their positives
It’s certainly the end of an era, though it’s hard to see mail-in DVDs as anything other than an archaic practice at this point.
There are still some benefits to a DVD mail service, such as access to some of the more obscure movies that aren’t covered by the top streaming services.
Plus, for those who have a spotty internet connection, or simply don’t want to deal with streaming issues like buffering (which happens to the best of us from time to time), DVDs offer a local option with a guaranteed level of quality. (Assuming there aren’t any bugbears like scratches on the physical discs, but in our experience as Lovefilm subscribers way back when, that was quite rare).
So the service is not without some plus points, but the truth is that it no longer made financial sense for Netflix.
Oddly enough, the streaming giant had no desire to sell its DVD-by-mail division, even though there was clear interest in buying it (from DVD rental company Redbox). You can make of it whatever you want, but the red envelopes are now a thing of the past.