It didn't need to, we were still happy enough to go the cinema for box office releases back then. Remember that streaming, despite how it might feel, is a stupidly recent thing. Disney went "let's get in on this cash cow" less than 5 years ago.

Netflix started streaming in 2007. It came to mobile in 2010 with the introduction of the iPad. Hulu was also launched in 2007.

Netflix streaming was unexceptional. I dropped it when it became an extra cost option and didn’t pick back up again until House of Cards. Sadly their DVD service has decayed considerably.