Netflix abandons plan to split DVD services

Logan Burress

Netflix Inc. announced Monday that it was reversing a plan announced only weeks ago to split its DVD-by-mail and streaming video services.

CEO Reed Hastings announced on Sept. 18 that the company’s movies-by-mail service would be rebranded as Qwikster and would add video games to its catalog, while the Netflix brand would be dedicated to streaming video.

Now, Netflix is abandoning that plan.

“Instead, U.S. members will continue to use one website, one account and one password for their movie and TV watching enjoyment under the Netflix brand,” the company said in a statement.

“Consumers value the simplicity Netflix has always offered and we respect that,” Netflix co-founder and CEO Reed Hastings said. “There is a difference between moving quickly — which Netflix has done very well for years — and moving too fast, which is what we did in this case.”