Listen free for 30 days
Listen with offer
-
That Will Never Work
- Narrated by: Marc Randolph
- Length: 11 hrs
Failed to add items
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
£0.00 for first 30 days
That Will Never Work
Buy Now for £12.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Summary
In the tradition of Phil Knight's Shoe Dog comes the incredible untold story of how Netflix went from concept to company - all revealed by co-founder and first CEO Marc Randolph.
Once upon a time, brick-and-mortar video stores were king. Late fees were ubiquitous, video-streaming unheard of, and widespread DVD adoption seemed about as imminent as flying cars. These were the widely accepted laws of the land in 1997 when Marc Randolph had an idea.
It was a simple thought - leveraging the internet to rent movies - and was just one of many more proposals, like personalised baseball bats and a shampoo delivery service, that Randolph would pitch to his business partner, Reed Hastings, on their commute to work each morning.
But Hastings was intrigued, and the pair - with Hastings as the primary investor and Randolph as the CEO - founded a company.
Now with over 150 million subscribers, Netflix's triumph feels inevitable but the twenty-first century's most disruptive start-up began with few believers and calamity at every turn. From having to pitch his own mother on being an early investor, to the motel conference room that served as a first office, to server crashes on launch day, to the now-infamous meeting when they pitched Blockbuster to acquire them, Marc Randolph's transformational journey exemplifies how anyone with grit, gut instincts and determination can change the world - even with an idea that many think will never work.
What emerges, however, isn't just the inside story of one of the world's most iconic companies. Full of counter-intuitive concepts and written in binge-worthy prose, it answers some of our most fundamental questions about taking that leap of faith in business or in life: How do you begin? How do you weather disappointment and failure? How do you deal with success? What even is success?
From idea generation to team building to knowing when it's time to let go, That Will Never Work is not only the ultimate follow-your-dreams parable but also one of the most dramatic and insightful entrepreneurial stories of our time.
Listeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about That Will Never Work
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rad
- 26-09-19
Engaging, interesting and well read
This book is an engaging story from the start. Once I started I couldn't stop listening and would sneak in any few minutes I could while in the car, walking the dogs or just sitting in the sun (which I never do, I'm always on the go).
I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to know about startup life in Silicon Valley at the turn of the century, how one of the worlds biggest .com successes launched and how long it took them to find something that people actually wanted to buy.
it's narrated brilliantly too.
Well worth a read.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Maria Haase Coelho
- 29-02-20
Really enjoyed listening to this! Inspiring!
Fascinating to learn about how netflix came about. Also a motivating and inspiring story that teaches you to transform your ideas into reality!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Abbi Vaughan
- 25-06-22
A truly inspirational story
The whole story is thoroughly engaging throughout and is a truly inspirational read for business enthusiasts.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 07-06-20
Great for Startup Founder
As a startup founder I look for books exactly like this that share more than just general and normally cliche advices.
The book provide great insight into the reality of how Netflix was built from the point of view of the founder. It does miss out a lot of the details but other books like Netflixed can plug those holes.
As a founder this book is invaluable and I highly reccomend it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- B S B
- 04-11-19
excellent insight and great advice for anyone
excellent insight and great advice for anyone. was easy to finish this book and very motivational
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Chris Gallagher
- 06-07-20
Enjoyable story well told
Not quite as good as shoe dog, but certainly worth a listen.
Shows how fine the margins are for success and total ruin
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 12-10-19
Amazing book
Amazing book worth every minute of it. Easy to listen, the best narration I’ve ever heard in an audiobook and very interesting story.
Well done! Cannot recommend enough!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Owain Jones
- 12-10-19
Great listen
As someone from the UK when I first came across Netflix It was already a streaming service so hearing this story from the beginning was really interesting. It’s a 5 star review from me 👍
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rebecca w.
- 16-01-20
loved the story
Made an easy binge read, could pick up really easily. Some great principles were shared, but if you are expecting a more recent look at Netflix this isn't for you x
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Pecky
- 11-02-20
fascinating, honest, insightful
what are great read. Marc bares all in an honest account of how & Reed grew Netflix. I couldn't put it down.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!