(Wilmot Reed Hastings Jr.) is best known as the co-founder, Chairman and CEO of Netflix.
Founding of Netflix
In 1998 Reed Hastings co-founded Netflix. They offered a flat rate movie rental-by-mail to customers in the United States. Hastings came up with the idea on the way to the gym. He had a late fee for a video he rented, it was more than six weeks late and the store wanted to charge him $40 dollars. He was too embarrassed to tell his wife. He is quoted as saying, "I got the idea for Netflix after my company was acquired. I had a big late fee for “Apollo 13.” It was six weeks late and I owed the video store $40. I had misplaced the cassette. It was all my fault. I didn’t want to tell my wife about it. And I said to myself, “I’m going to compromise the integrity of my marriage over a late fee?” Later, on my way to the gym, I realized they had a much better business model. You could pay $30 or $40 a month and work out as little or as much as you wanted."(1)
Early Life and Education Wilmot Reed Hastings, Jr. was born in Boston Massachusetts October 8, 1960, to Joan Amory and Wilmot Reed Hastings. Reed graduated from Buckingham Browne & Nichols, a private school in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He then attended Bowdoin College and studied mathematics, and served in the Marine Corps officer training through the Platoon Leader Class in 1981. Reed graduated in 1983 and joined the Peace Corps. He went to Swaziland and taught high school mathematics from 1983-1985. He stated that his experiences in Africa helped hone his entrepreneurial skills and risk taking abilities. Upon returning from the Peace Corps he attended Stanford University and earned a degree in Computer Science.While working his first job at Adaptive Technology, Reed invented a tool for debugging.(2) He then went on to found his own company Pure Software. (4) A company that produced products to troubleshoot software. The company grew so fast he had trouble managing the rapid headcount growth. He felt he was losing confidence and asked his board to replace him.
Inventions
Method and apparatus for modifying relocatable object code files and monitoring programs - An object code expansion program inserts new instructions and data between preexisting instructions and data of an object code file. (3)
Rental inventory management - Managing rental items using hierarchical storage locations without putting away returned items. (3)
User interface and pointing device for a consumer electronics device - A remote control comprises a touch-sensitive device configured to detect touching and convert the touching into one or more first data signals; a wireless data transmitter; and logic coupled to the touch-sensitive device and to the wireless data transmitter. (3)
Approach for estimating user ratings of items - According to an embodiment of the invention, an approach is provided for estimating how a particular user would rate a particular item from a plurality of items. (3)
Approach for managing rental items across a plurality of distribution locations - An “inventory free” approach for managing rental items across a plurality of distribution locations includes sending at least some rental items that are not needed by two or more distribution locations to a designated distribution location.
Approach for estimating user ratings of items - According to another embodiment of the invention, an approach is provided for estimating how a user would rate an item that the user has not yet rated.
Achievments
featured in a front-page article in USA Today
The Henry Crown Leadership Award was presented to Reed Hastings in 2014. Each year the award is given to an outstanding leader whose achievements reflect the high standards of honor, integrity, industry, and philanthropy that characterized the life and career of industrialist and philanthropist Henry Crown.
Reed Hastings-
(Wilmot Reed Hastings Jr.) is best known as the co-founder, Chairman and CEO of Netflix.
Founding of Netflix
In 1998 Reed Hastings co-founded Netflix. They offered a flat rate movie rental-by-mail to customers in the United States. Hastings came up with the idea on the way to the gym. He had a late fee for a video he rented, it was more than six weeks late and the store wanted to charge him $40 dollars. He was too embarrassed to tell his wife. He is quoted as saying, "I got the idea for Netflix after my company was acquired. I had a big late fee for “Apollo 13.” It was six weeks late and I owed the video store $40. I had misplaced the cassette. It was all my fault. I didn’t want to tell my wife about it. And I said to myself, “I’m going to compromise the integrity of my marriage over a late fee?” Later, on my way to the gym, I realized they had a much better business model. You could pay $30 or $40 a month and work out as little or as much as you wanted."(1)
Early Life and Education
Wilmot Reed Hastings, Jr. was born in Boston Massachusetts October 8, 1960, to Joan Amory and Wilmot Reed Hastings. Reed graduated from Buckingham Browne & Nichols, a private school in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He then attended Bowdoin College and studied mathematics, and served in the Marine Corps officer training through the Platoon Leader Class in 1981. Reed graduated in 1983 and joined the Peace Corps. He went to Swaziland and taught high school mathematics from 1983-1985. He stated that his experiences in Africa helped hone his entrepreneurial skills and risk taking abilities. Upon returning from the Peace Corps he attended Stanford University and earned a degree in Computer Science.While working his first job at Adaptive Technology, Reed invented a tool for debugging.(2) He then went on to found his own company Pure Software. (4) A company that produced products to troubleshoot software. The company grew so fast he had trouble managing the rapid headcount growth. He felt he was losing confidence and asked his board to replace him.
Inventions
Achievments
Other investments
References
1. "Out of Africa, Onto the Web". December 17, 2006 – via NYTimes.com.
2. Debugging Software. January/February 2006. Stanford Magazine
3. Inventions Justia Patents.
4. Pure Software Wikipedia.
5. Facebook Facebook.
6. Hastings Fund Hastings Fund