Netflix added 8 million new subscribers globally in three months, despite price rise in US
Shows such as Stranger Things and The Crown continue to draw new subscribers to streaming giant, and founder Reed Hastings plays down threat from Disney’s decision to pull its content and launch rival service in 2019
Our growing appetite for binge watching cannot be stopped – even by price increases from Netflix in its home market, the United States.
Looking at its results for the final quarter of 2017, the streaming-media giant reported far more new subscribers globally than analysts expected. The company said that 8.3 million people around the world signed up for its service over the past three months, blowing past its expectation of 6.3 million subscribers.
Many feared that Netflix would see fewer new sign-ups, in light of the company’s decision to raise its prices last year in response to ballooning costs for licensed and original shows. The standard monthly subscription in the US increased by US$1, while the premium plan increased by U$2. (Subscription fees in Hong Kong have remained the same, with HK$63 (US$8) the cost of the monthly basic plan.)
Netflix competes against anything you might be doing rather than watching Netflix, whether that is reading, playing video games, dining out, or going to the movies.
But its fourth-quarter earnings, which are the first to give us a good sense of how people responded to the increase, show those fears are unfounded. At least for now. Netflix managed to lure people to see premieres of original favourites including Stranger Things and The Crown.