Netflix users in some countries will soon have to pay more to watch TV and movies without commercials.
In Tuesday's shareholder letter, streaming service It said it plans to “retire” its cheapest ad-free plan in “some advertising countries.” The letter said Netflix plans to implement the changes in the second quarter of this year, before they take effect in Canada and the United Kingdom.
The company did not specify when (or if) the changes would affect U.S. subscribers.
“Our goal is to make advertising a more viable revenue stream that contributes to sustained, healthy revenue growth in 2025 and beyond,” the shareholder letter reads.
There may be more price increases in the future.
“As we invest in and improve Netflix, we sometimes ask our members to pay a little extra to reflect those improvements, which in turn drives a positive flywheel of additional investment, helping us to further improve and grow our service. This is what happens,” Juju said. letter.
Last year, Netflix stopped allowing new and returning subscribers in the US, UK, and Canada to select its basic plan. US subscribers who inherited Netflix's basic plan There was a price increase last year This comes after Netflix increased the price of that plan from $9.99 per month to $11.99 per month. The company also raised the price of its most expensive plan in the U.S. to $22.99.
A video streaming service was also launched. crackdown on password sharing last year.
Currently, the lowest tier plan available to new Netflix users is the ad-supported plan, which costs $6.99 per month. Some TV shows and movies are not available on your plan. The cheapest ad-free plan for new users is the Standard plan at $15.49 per month.
According to Netflix, 40% of new subscribers to the current advertising market are using advertising plans. The company said it added 13.1 million subscribers last quarter, bringing its total subscribers worldwide to about 260 million.
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