Netflix in 1999

Archive.org has the Internet "Wayback Machine" that lets you see a Web site from many years ago. I looked up Netflix and found a copy of the Netflix home page from 1999:

Here's the old Netflix logo:

Netflix used to charge a per-disc rental fee, and limited the rentals to 7 days.

Note the "Rent from Netflix, buy from Amazon" link and "More than 2,600 DVDs to Rent"...

Update: Fixed screen capture.

Comments

[Sonja]

This is so interesting to see!!! I did not even know about Netflix until maybe a year and a half ago. I probably would not have joined Netflix if I would have had to pay per DVD and having it for 7 days.

Netflix has come a long way.

[Phillip Winn]

I joined in 1999, so it wasn't a *bad* deal... ;-)

They were pretty lax about the seven-day rule. In late 1999 (I think it was the second half of the year), they launched a program which let you keep movies for as long as you liked for a flat-rate, but you were still charged if you rented more than eight. That was confusing, so they were quick to credit people (like me) who sent back movies a bit early and ended up with ten in a given month. With all of the customer service hassles, it was no surprise to me when they switched to "unlimited" for the number of rentals.

2,600! Sign me up!

[Deon Gordon]

Wow! Talk about coming a long way.

[Scott]

Oh, the memories. Seems like just yesterday that I signed up with them.

[Tony]

I've been a member since they first switched to unlimited. Back then, the basic membership was 4 out at a time...and when they switched to 3 out at a time, they grandfathered in those who were previously getting 4. So, I still get 4 out at a time for the basic 3-out price. Sweet...

[Michael]

How come when I check it out, the pictures show up then disappear with the Xs?

because xxx sells!

I've been a subscriber since the pay-per-disc plan in 1999. If I remember correctly, you would buy a block of rentals in advance, and the cost per disc was lower if you bought a larger block. Then they went with the "Marquee" program, which was the precursor to the current system. They encouraged their existing pay-per-disc customers to switch over, but I sent an email explaining that I didn't like the "use it or lose it" plan of "up to 4 rentals per month." They finally switched to the current scheme in 2000 I believe.

[Nicholas Barnard]

I joined in 1999 from my college dorm. (I was without a car and the college was in BFE.) You used to be able to "extend" your rental period by telling them that the DVD arrived late, and they'd adjust the rental period accordingly. (It usually did arrive later than they thought it would.)

I remember that the return address was a PO Box in a nearby town. (This was when Netflix still only had one DC in San Jose.) Anyone have any idea how this worked? Did they pay couriers to pickup the mailers then Fedex them back?

I also remember that the mailers used to be cardboard, then Tyvex, then they got cheap and went to paper. Also didn't the mailers used to be metered both ways before they went to BRM and the "Paid" box on the outbound ones?

[Guy B. Jones]

Wow. I sort of remember the old page, vaguely. I remember asking myself what the heck was the benefit of renting movies over the Web on a pay-per-disc basis. Glad they switched to the current scheme. I'll wager not many people back then thought the company would survive as long as it has, nor become as relatively successful.

[Vikram Chachra]

Wow! I love the archive.org site. Had a neat little nostalgia trip looking up pages from '99 and '00 on my dotcom that has long since passed away to webbie heaven..