Netflix CEO Reed Hastings told Reuters that Netflix wants to expand its reach, but it probably won’t in the short term. Hastings said that “eventually we want to be on all the game consoles, all the Blu-ray players, all the Internet TVs.”
As for those game consoles, said Hastings, “currently our Xbox deal is exclusive and we haven’t characterized it more than that.” No telling how long that deal could be in place, especially as Hastings remains on the Microsoft board of directors.
When asked about an iPhone or smartphone service, Hastings said that it’s likely to “come over time, but nothing in the short term.” For movie watching, “we’re not focused on mobile yet,” said Hastings, but Netflix “will get to mobile eventually.”
As for the competition, Hastings didn’t say much about the potential new YouTube movie rental service. In terms of Blockbuster’s recent store closings, Hastings said that Redbox is benefitting far more than Netflix from the diminished competition.
Hastings said digital video watching is growing but the DVD will be hard to completely get rid of. “There will be people doing DVD-by-mail in 15 or 20 years,” but his “best guess is that DVD will peak for us in five or so years.”
As for the future, “Streaming is exploding,” said Hastings. “So we are getting nice growth in the DVD side and huge growth on the streaming side.” Hastings was on hand for a Netflix event to award a $1 million prize to the winner of a contest to enhance its recommendation engine.