Exam 4: Netflix in Two Acts: the Making of an E-Commerce Giant and the Uncertain Future of Atoms to Bits

Relate your understanding of Netflix dominance in the DVD-by-mail business to what you learned in the Strategy and Technology chapter: what three resources for competitive advantage did Netflix create in this market that rivals Blockbuster and Walmart couldn't match?

The Netflix work culture is in many ways similar to its peers.

The phrase __________________ refers to the media industry practice of making content available through a given distribution channel for a specified time period, usually under a different revenue model.

Brands are built through _____.

Why are streaming services considered more appealing to creative content creators than traditional TV?

By going public, Netflix encountered competition from the large, established firms Wal-Mart and Blockbuster. What aspect of Netflix going public lured these firms into the market?

Physical retailers are limited by shelf space and geography (meaning the density of customers around a particular location).

Although Netflix had a larger distribution network than rivals, other firms could build a similarly large warehouse network. Why was the size of the Netflix DVD-by-mail customer base critical to repelling rivals?

Churn rate is a term that refers to the:

How is Comcast vertically integrated?

In addition to serving as CEO of Netflix, Reed Hastings has also served as _______________ for two other leading tech companies, Facebook and Microsoft.

By shifting to a streaming model, Netflix stands to eliminate shipping and handling costs.

Durable brands are built through customer experience.

Netflix, the one-time "dot-com" upstart managed to achieve scale economies despite the fact that it faced two massive rivals: Blockbuster, a name synonymous with home video rental, and Walmart, not just a large firm, Fortune One, the largest firm in the US ranked by revenues. In what ways did Netflix offer size advantages over these rivals?

How does the Cinematch recommendation system work?

Cinematch develops a map of user ratings and steers users toward titles preferred by people with tastes that are most like theirs.

The Netflix customer experience was always weaker than the in-store experience of DVD rental firms, which had human staff. However, consumers were willing to overlook their dissatisfaction given Netflix's other benefits.

_____ refers to a limit, imposed by the Internet Service Provider (e.g. cable or telephone company) on the total amount of traffic that a given subscriber can consume (usually per each billing period).

Describe Netflix's streaming video business model.

User ratings act as _____ for Netflix's customers.