The Netflix political drama “House of Cards” debuts via the streaming video site today. Directed by David Fincher and starring Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright, the series is the first original programming financed by Netflix, which could take on cable offerings from the likes of HBO and Showtime. It also serves as a new experiment to the distribution model, since all 13 episodes will be made available at once.

“Our goal is to shut down a portion of America for a whole day,” joked producer Beau Willimon.

“The reason people watch HBO and Showtime is increasingly because of original content, shows like ‘Game of Thrones,'” said Aaron Kessler, an analyst at Raymond James. “If Netflix’s original content is well received, it could bring in some new subscribers.”

“The need to differentiate itself is becoming more crucial for Netflix amid increased streaming competition from Amazon.com Inc., Hulu LLC and others, and in the face of expensive commitments to license new content and expand overseas,” suggests the Wall Street Journal. Ted Sarandos, chief content officer of Netflix, is managing a budget of $6 billion for the next three years.

In order to generate interest, Netflix will offer the first episode of “House of Cards” for free with no subscription commitment, while all 13 episodes of the first season will be available to subscribers starting today (but not through the Netflix DVD-by-mail service). The company reportedly invested about $100 million for two seasons.

“That the fans even have a choice in the matter is a testament to the fundamental changes under way in the television business,” explains The New York Times. “Digital video recorders, video-on-demand capabilities and streaming Web sites have given viewers command of what they watch and when, not unlike the way the invention of supermarkets gave food shoppers a panoply of new choices. In both cases, some consumers love to binge.”

Not surprisingly, some Hollywood execs remain skeptical regarding the all-at-once release model. “Willimon acknowledged the advantages to stretching out a season — it’s a format viewers are used to, there’s more time for marketing — but said that as a storyteller (he’s best known for the play ‘Farragut North,’ which inspired the film ‘The Ides of March’) he prefers the ‘House of Cards’ approach,” reports NYT. As television becomes more integrated with the Internet, he said, “it might even dispense with episodes altogether. You might just get eight straight hours or 10 straight hours, and you decide where to pause.”

Netflix has licensed five other original shows for availability this year, including a return of the critically-acclaimed comedy “Arrested Development.”