Outside the Beltway

Chart Of The Day: Netflix v. Blockbuster Edition

Doug Mataconis · Friday, February 25, 2011 · 4 comments

This chart is part of a larger graphic at The New York Times detailing just how Blockbuster was overtaken by Netflix:

FILED UNDER: Economics and Business, Netflix, New York, New York Times

About Doug Mataconis

Doug Mataconis held a B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University and J.D. from George Mason University School of Law. He joined the staff of OTB in May 2010 and contributed a staggering 16,483 posts before his retirement in January 2020. He passed far too young in July 2021.

Comments

James Joyner says:

Friday, 25 February 2011 at 08:50

I understand why Netflix’ business model better fit the modern world’s than Blockbuster’s. But the latter actually had massively more revenue a year before it went bankrupt and then went into a tailspin.

It’s also worth noting that Netflix seems to have leveled off at a third of the revenue Blockbuster brought in at its heyday.
DC Loser says:

Friday, 25 February 2011 at 08:59

Now with Amazon snapping at its heels, Netflix better watch out.
John Burgess says:

Friday, 25 February 2011 at 10:41

James: Might that be because Netflix charged significantly lower fees for the same volume of product? I can easily get three times (or more) the volume for the same price that Blockbuster would charge.

My local Blockbuster closed two months ago, btw.
Timothy Watson says:

Friday, 25 February 2011 at 14:53

The graph is of revenue, not profit. I would wager that Netflix has a lot lower overhead: less buildings, less employees, etc.