In contrast to his previous specials, which had been produced for broadcast and sale on physical media, Live at the Beacon Theater is sold directly from the comedian's website for the cost of $5.00 USD and can be downloaded in 720p HD or streamed in browser.

As stated in the end credits, the film was dedicated to comedian Patrice O'Neal, who died two weeks prior to its release.

[3] The film won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Special and received three other nominations.

included a letter emphasizing the direct relationship between the artist and consumer in the hopes that this would more effectively deter piracy.

CK considered the experiment a success, later saying he covered the $250,000 costs of the film and website within 12 hours of its release, and that he had grossed $550,000 as of the time of his statement.

said that he reimbursed his company $250,000 for production costs, gave $250,000 in bonuses to those who work for him, donated $280,000 to a mix of charities, and joked he would use the remaining $220,000 to buy himself a new penis ("I'm keeping the old one...I'm gonna have an old one and a new one, right there.