“Apparently Netflix is back to growth”abstract CNN. After two quarters of sharp decline, the streamer managed to reverse the trend by adding 2.4 million subscribers to its portfolio between July and September. The platform had anticipated this return to growth, but to a lesser extent: it only expected one million new subscribers.
“Netflix now has 223 million subscribers worldwide” and expect to earn more “4.5 million in the fourth quarter”again surpassing expectations, specifies the American channel.
With these figures – which caused the share price to jump 14% in electronic exchanges after the close of Wall Street – the streaming giant “stopped the hemorrhage of customers that had caused unease among investors and raised questions about the streaming business’s growth prospects”observe The New York Times.
For analyst Rich Greenfield, interviewed by the New York daily, these results show that “Netflix continues to thrive, while its competitors lag behind. I think reports of the death of streaming or the maturity of the market have been greatly exaggerated”.
CNBC note that “Most of the growth in the quarter came from the Asia-Pacific region”with 1.43 million additional subscribers, while “the United States and Canada had the lowest growth of any region, with a net contribution of 100,000 subscribers”.
Strategic turns
This is “the first time this year that Netflix gains subscribers”highlighted The Hollywood Reporter : the platform had lost 200,000 customers in the first quarter then 970,000 in the second – “losses that had depressed the share price and deeply demoralized employees, facing a wave of layoffs and falling expenses within the company”.
But the optimism was back at the streamer on Tuesday when the quarterly results were announced. “After a difficult first half, we believe we are on the path to a further acceleration of growth”observed the group. “The recipe is to satisfy our subscribers”.
The awakening of the streaming giant intervenes “as it prepares for two major strategic shifts”intended “to support the growth of its revenues and its subscriber base”analyse The Wall Street Journal.
The first is the launch, in November, of a cheaper subscription but accompanied by advertising. A cultural earthquake for the streamer, who grew up over years of openly disdaining advertising, but which should allow him “to increase revenue per subscriber”specifies the economic daily.
The second corner is the fight against password sharing, which will be implemented in 2023. “After offering users [frauduleux] the ability to transfer content from their profiles to new accounts, the streamer has indicated that it will allow its subscribers to create associated accounts” paying, for “monetize account sharing”writes The Verge.