The unique strategy Netflix deployed to reach 90 mn worldwide subscribers

When Netflix first launched in the late 1990s, it distributed DVDs - mainly films - by mail

In just a decade, Netflix has grown from a video service with seven million U.S. subscribers to one that reaches 93 million people worldwide.

Its growth and ability to break into well-established industries – first video rental, now television and film – is a rare accomplishment. In my book “Portals: A Treatise on Internet-Distributed Television,” I explore how Netflix and other internet-distributed video services forced the existing television industry to radically change its practices.

At the same time, many have struggled to understand Netflix’s strategy. With other services entering the video on-demand market,