Re: Idiots
In Netflix's case, that was absolutely the plan from the start and they weren't quiet about it. Right from the beginning, when they were still a DVD rental service, they said they were planning to have a) online streaming, and b) their own studio.
I also think they'd have been happy to keep streaming other people's stuff as well, if they could, but studios decided they'd rather try launching their own streaming service so they could control the whole stack.
I say this not to defend Netflix -- I wouldn't still be a subscriber if I didn't get it for free with my cell phone service -- but because I think it's interesting that they outlined their plans right from the start.