Liberty Media’s Malone says he tried to buy Netflix when it was $8 a share

John Malone, regarded as one of the shrewdest media investors ever, told CNBC he saw the importance of video streaming to the evolving television ecosystem, even in the early days.

In an interview that aired Thursday, the Liberty Media billionaire recalled attempts to have DirecTV purchase Netflix, when he was chairman of the satellite-television service from 2008 to 2010.

“I tried to buy Netflix from [co-founder] Reed Hastings when the stock was eight bucks, but he wouldn’t sell it to me. You know, damn that bad luck,” Malone told CNBC’s David Faber in the lead up to Liberty Media’s investor day Thursday. The event was held…