Swasey had had the unenviable task of downplaying the price difference to angry consumers as the size of “a latte a month,” rather than making the common sense explanation he had pushed Hastings to make: Netflix was losing money on DVD by mail as a result of the escalating costs of postage and shipping. The “latte” remark infuriated recession-weary subscribers, one of whom posted Swasey’s cell phone number in the comments section of Netflix’s blog. He patiently responded to the hundreds of calls and vitriolic voicemails by returning them personally and admitting to the surprised callers that
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