Netflix opened its Hillsboro call center in 2006 at a time when its DVD-by-mail business was booming. Now, the focus is on streaming.

(Oregonian file photo (2007))

Netflix said Wednesday that it will shutter its DVD customer service site in Hillsboro next year and lay off the 188 people who work there.

The pending closure was first reported by KOIN-TV.

"We will be closing our Hillsboro, Oregon center in June 2015, which will impact 188 full-time employees," wrote Cliff Edwards, Netflix director of corporate communications and technology, in an e-mail Wednesday evening. He said that Netflix may have jobs open for its Oregon employees at a new call center in Fremont, California or at another due to open later this year in Salt Lake City.

Oregon jobs could begin winding down as early as January, he said, when the new call center opens in Fremont.

The California-based movie rental and streaming company opened the facility in 2006, at a time when its DVD-by-mail business was booming. It expanded quickly and the company once employed several hundred at the site.

But Netflix's DVD business is ebbing as the company emphasizes online streaming.

Oregon call center employment has climbed rapidly since 2011, with the industry employing a record 12,340 last year, according to data from the Oregon Employment Department. But jobs have eroded somewhat this year, slipping below 12,000 in June for the first time since the fall of 2012.

Update, 4:30 p.m.: This article has been updated with additional information about how many people work in the facility and its closing date.

Update, 8:50 p.m.: This article has been updated with a statement from Netflix.

-- Mike Rogoway; twitter: @rogoway; 503-294-7699