Netflix Staff Told Ads May Come Before End Of 2022
The best thing about Netflix is that you can binge hours of your favourite show, never having to worry about an ad break. However, all that could be about to change as the entertainment giant looks to overhaul its current offering after thousands of subscribers abandoned the streaming service.
Last month, Netflix shared its first-quarter earnings. The figures revealed that in Q1 (January-March), it had lost 200k subscribers, as well as expecting to lose another two million in the upcoming months. To put this a bit more into perspective, it reported that it has 221.6 million streaming memberships, and was anticipating 224.5 million.
What Will The Netflix Ads Look Like?
Click to enlargeNetflix has said that despite a grim picture forming, it has a 'relatively high household penetration'. Plus, during the height of the pandemic in 2020/21, Netflix experienced higher than usual subscribers (probably due to the lockdowns), and that peak may be clouding its true performance.
It appears that introducing ads is something Netflix has been planning to do for a while, however, the recent mass exodus of subscribers is looking like the reason it's been pushed forward to 2022. The ad-supported tier will be a cheaper version of the current Netflix, according to an internal memo sent to staff and as reported by the New York Times.
Do We Know When Ads Are Coming To Netflix?
This particular strategy isn't unique. Just take a look at YouTube and YouTube Premium, Spotify with the same thing, as well as Hulu and HBO Max also having ad-supported versions of their services. For those who wish to save a bit of money - and don't mind sitting through adverts before their binge - it's an argument for a decent compromise.
According to the internal memo, we're expecting this tier to come in before the end of the year. Whether or not this stops people from cancelling their subscription remains to be seen, but the figures shared by the streaming platform in its Q1 report proves that something has to give.
