The problem of an official video release of "Cold Case" predates the Netflix phenomenon, so it's a bigger problem than just cutting a deal with the new kid on the entertainment block.

The problem is the licensing of the music rights, and it's stopped the show from even appearing on DVD -- something fans have been clamoring for since the end of the show's very first season in 2004.

"Cold Case" followed a Philadelphia investigator (played by Kathryn Morris) whose job was to reopen old cases. The show had a unique soundtrack approach, using popular music from the era during which the crime was originally committed -- a clever and effective mood-setting tool that has since proven to be a legal headache.

It's a problem suffered by a lot of music-heavy shows, especially ones using a lot of older songs.

Garson Foos, of DVD-distributor Shout! Factory, said that music licensing for home video is a complicated process that can involve multiple rights holders and a lot of resources.

"It's an extremely time-consuming process, and you sometimes have to do a little detective work to track (rights-holders) down," he said in a 2009 interview with TheWrap.com.

There is some hope, though I don't know how comforting it will be. Foos was being interviewed at the time because he had finally managed to release the similarly music-heavy series "thirtysomething" on DVD -- a mere 18 years after it left the air.

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