Shameful move, NetFlix boots Red Envelope

Its a sad day for a fan of Netflix like myself, feeling almost ashamed to be a customer. Netflix has had a branch within its company called Red Envelope, which invested in and distributed independent films. To date, Red Envelope has invested in more than 100 indie films ranging from documentary to drama and comedy and more, including films like Julie Delpy’s ‘2 Days in Paris’.

Here’s the reasoning behind this move, as reported on Yahoo!Movies: [According to a  Los Angeles Times  report, Netflix said it shuttered Red Envelope because the division competed withy Netflix’s Hollywood studio partners. Red Envelope employed about 50 people.]

Pretty bad, caving to studio pressure like that. I mean, I know its all business, but what was it “really” hurting. I haven’t seen any reporting about Red Envelope “losing” Netflix money. It sounds like another case of the big studios not liking something outside of their domain starting to actually take hold. So, do as Wal-Mart does and crush it while its still weak, before it can truly make a difference.