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Hemangi Borawake.
Probation Officer, Federal Bank
hemaborawake52@gmail.com
Batch- 2022-24
Netflix: Redefining the Entertainment Ecosystem
Sector: Entertainment and Media
Disruption Type: Platform Innovation, Subscription
Economy
Disrupt to Dominate: Netflix’s transformation from a DVD rental
service in 1997 to a global streaming leader is a
The Strategy Behind textbook case of platform disruption. Initially, it
differentiated itself by eliminating late fees—a
Modern Business pain point for customers of traditional rental chains
like Blockbuster. The real disruption, however,
Revolutions arrived in 2007 with the launch of online streaming,
followed by original content like House of Cards
in 2013 (McDonald & Smith-Rowsey, 2016). By
leveraging data analytics and machine learning,
Netflix provided personalised recommendations
and optimised content production (Hallinan &
In today’s fast-evolving global economy,
innovation is not merely a competitive advantage— Striphas, 2016). Its direct-to-consumer model
it is a necessity for survival. In particular, disruptive disrupted traditional entertainment distribution,
innovation—a concept popularized by Clayton bypassing broadcasters and cable providers.
Christensen (1997)—has become a powerful force,
enabling new entrants to transform industries by • Key Innovation: Subscription-based streaming
targeting overlooked segments or reimagining value with AI-powered content recommendations.
delivery.
This article explores how the disruptive • Impact: Redefined global content consumption,
business models of companies such as Netflix, triggered the decline of cable TV, and inspired the
Zomato, Zerodha, and Swiggy have not only streaming revolution.
challenged incumbents but also reshaped consumer
behaviour and expectations.
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