Redbox Instant, Verizon's attempt to compete against Netflix, is being closed after a two-year existence marked by criminal activity and a failure to attract customers.

"Redbox Instant by Verizon... will be shut down on Tuesday, October 7, 2014, at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time," customers were told in a notice on the service's website.

The Verizon/Redbox joint venture never caught on, but things took a turn for the worse this year. "Redbox Instant has a problem that may just break its neck: The video service disabled sign-ups for new users because of criminal activity three months ago and has yet to open up the gates again," GigaOm reported on Sept. 29. Redbox customers' payment information wasn't leaked, but criminals had been using Redbox Instant's website "to verify credit card numbers they illegally obtained elsewhere."

Though criminal activity caused Verizon and Redbox to stop taking new signups, it was lack of interest that sealed the decision to kill the service entirely. A Redbox Instant spokesperson told GigaOm this weekend that "the service had not been as successful as either partner hoped it would be. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause our customers."

Redbox Instant was available to anyone whether they got Internet service from Verizon or another Internet provider. The service had apps for game consoles, set-top boxes, smartphones, and tablets.

Redbox is continuing its flagship business of offering movie and game rentals at automated kiosks.

Netflix continued to soar in the two years Verizon attempted to compete in the online video market, even as money disputes caused Netflix video to perform poorly on Verizon's network. Netflix accounts for more than a third of North American Internet traffic during peak viewing hours, with Redbox Instant not even cracking the Top 10:

Comcast reached a similar decision recently when it decided to stop offering the Streampix video service as a standalone product. Streampix will remain alive as a feature for Comcast subscribers, but Comcast said that it hasn't been able to "find a viable business model" for a nationwide online video service. Comcast's NBCUniversal division is part-owner of Hulu, but aside from that Internet and pay-TV providers are struggling to counter the growing popularity of Netflix.