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Seinfeld Takes ‘Comedians in Cars’ to Netflix

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

Jerry Seinfeld performs at Stand Up For Heroes, presented by the New York Comedy Festival and the Bob Woodruff Foundation, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 1.

Jerry Seinfeld is moving to Netflix.

New and old episodes of Seinfeld’s show “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” will move to Netflix later this year. The move is a blow to Crackle, Sony’s streaming service, which has run the show since its debut in 2012.

In addition to “Comedians in Cars,” Seinfeld has also signed a production deal with Netflix, which will include performing two stand-up specials, and developing scripted and nonscripted content.

In recent months, Netflix has been gobbling up comic talent, including Chris Rock, Dave Chappelle and Amy Schumer, all of whom are performing stand-up specials for the service. Netflix has been spending lavishly to bring them on: Rock’s two forthcoming stand-up shows cost Netflix a reported $40 million. Terms for Seinfeld’s deal were not disclosed.

“Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” started on Crackle 4 1/2 years ago, and is the highest-profile offering on the service. Last year, it was nominated for an Emmy for best variety series. But Seinfeld grew distant from Crackle after Sony’s television chairman, Steve Mosko, left the company last year, and “Comedians in Cars” has been on the market since at least October. Hulu was also involved in negotiations for the show.

In a statement, Seinfeld said, “When I first started thinking about ‘Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee,’ the entire Netflix business model consisted of mailing out DVDs in envelopes. I love that we are now joining together, both at very different points.”

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