No Longer Tiny, Netflix Gets Respect—and Creates Fear
After years as a bit player in entertainment, Netflix Inc. is being eyed for a new role by Hollywood: industry hulk.
The Silicon Valley company has successfully expanded its mail-order DVD rental service to delivering video online. Meantime, the rise of Internet-connected TVs and disc players means that Netflix’s electronically streamed movies and TV shows are reaching living rooms, not just computers.
All that poses a potential threat to the traditional way consumers watch movies and TV: cable, phone and satellite systems.
Netflix had 16.9 million subscribers at the end of September, up 52 percent from a year earlier.
