This Old Ad Will Make You Realize Just How Far Netflix Has Come

Netflix was born in 1997 thanks to a $40 late fee, and 20 years later it's not just still around — it's a genre-defying giant.

Cofounded by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph, the company was incorporated on Aug. 29, 1997 and was originally called Kibble, before moving onto NetFlix, and then finally settling on Netflix. And it has become the streaming service through which to binge-watch movies and TV shows and a meme, and it has changed the way we watch television.

According to a Fortune Magazine interview on Jan. 28, 2009, Hastings said the idea of Netflix came from a $40 late fee he received for the movie Apollo 13. "I remember the fee because I was embarrassed by it," Hastings said to Fortune. Along with Randolph, the two mailed CDs in an envelope to Hastings' address and waited to see if the items remained intact. They did, and now the company is celebrating its 20th anniversary. Though Randolph allegedly contends that the story is made up, Netflix still enjoys retelling the bit.

The company first rented DVDs to people in April 1998 and quickly progressed to a subscription service by Sept. 23, 1999. In an ad for the company in 1998, Netflix, then NetFlix, explains why it's a better alternative to Blockbuster or other DVD rental shops. "You won't have to search for a video store that carries more than a few titles. You'll never again have to fight to get a copy of a new release. When you're finished, you just send it back in a pre-addressed, pre-paid mailer. You can rent two DVD's for just four bucks each! Rent additional titles for a measly three dollars each! And the newest releases from Hollywood can be reserved for only five dollars."

Watch the ad for yourself above, and remember a time when the idea of Netflix was completely novel.