24 January 2024 , 14:48
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Netflix enjoyed a surge of new sign-ups towards the end of last year - as worried customers flocked to create their own accounts amid the streamer's crackdown on password sharing.
More than a staggering 13.1 million subscriptions were taken out in the three months up to Christmas, marking the platform's highest quarterly growth since 2020. It has since become the most-watched streaming service in the world with 247.15million users. Prime Video is second with 200m and Disney Plus in third with 150.2m.
The company is confident in its growth path and is planning to increase prices. Co-chief executive Greg Peters told analysts: "We largely put price increases on hold as we rolled out paid sharing. Now that we're through that, we're able to resume our standard approach. The summary statement might be 'back to business as usual'."
Initially, Netflix offered a single subscription fee granting customers unlimited streaming across various devices. However, the platform has recently implemented more stringent sharing rules and introduced multiple plans, some of which have risen in price. The most economical option is the 'Standard with adverts' plan, priced at £4.99 per month. This provides access to Netflix's television and film library at 1080p quality - but includes adverts.
The second choice, costing £10.99, is the 'Standard' plan, featuring all the same benefits as the first but without any ads.
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The third and most expensive alternative is the £17.99 'Premium' plan, offering 4K (Ultra HD) and HDR quality, an ad-free experience, and additional perks such as increased device availability for simultaneous streaming.
We don't seem to mind adverts
Many new members weren't put off by seeing adverts so opted for the cheapest plan, making up some 40 per cent of the new sign-ups.
Netflix had refused to run adverts on the platform for years, claiming it would damage the viewer's experience. But it was forced to explore all options after a dramatic decline in subscribers in the first half of 2022.
In its pursuit of other revenue streams, the platform is experimenting with live events in an attempt to attract new audiences. Only this week it landed the exclusive rights to broadcast the iconic WWE Raw - pro-wrestling's most popular weekly show.
From January next year, the service will be the only place you'll get to see it, after more than three decades of the grapple-fest being broadcast globally on TV. Subscribers outside the US will also get to see all live events and WWE shows, including pay-per-view specials Royal Rumble, WrestleMania and SummerSlam.
And Netflix isn't the only one broadening its horizons, with Amazon also set to start showing adverts to Prime members, unless they stump up an extra £2.99 a month. Analyst at PP Foresight, Paolo Pescatore, says the numbers validated Netflix's strategy. "Another cracking quarter to finish the year," he said. "These latest results reaffirm that Netflix is firmly the king among all streamers."
To add to its success, Netflix received 18 Oscar nominations this week, including Best Picture for Leonard Bernstein biopic Maestro, starring Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan.