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Netflix Rocked By Subscriber Loss, May Offer Cheaper Ad-Supported Plans (reuters.com) 181

Posted by BeauHD from the ads-ads-and-more-ads dept.
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Reuters: Netflix said inflation, the war in Ukraine and fierce competition contributed to a loss of subscribers for the first time in more than a decade and predicted more contraction ahead, marking an abrupt shift in fortune for a streaming company that thrived during the pandemic. Netflix's 26% tumble after the bell on Tuesday erased about $40 billion of its stock market value. Since it warned in January of weak subscriber growth, the company has lost nearly half of its value. The lagging subscriber growth prompted Netflix for the first time to say it might offer lower-priced version of the service with advertising. [...] In addition to advertising-supported plans, the company is also looking to generate additional revenue from customers who share their account with friends or family outside their home.
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Netflix Rocked By Subscriber Loss, May Offer Cheaper Ad-Supported Plans More

Netflix Rocked By Subscriber Loss, May Offer Cheaper Ad-Supported Plans

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  • Too much money (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Rotting ( 7243 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @09:05AM (#62461584)

    It's $22 in Canada per month, compared to other streaming services that are roughly $6 to $10. Perhaps they should stop increasing the price every couple months?

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      I wouldn't mind the cost if they had more material on there. As it is you need half a dozen streaming services to see all the shows you want to see. Netflix alone just doesn't have enough good stuff on it.

      • While that a joke it's also figuratively true. I fished out all the gems I wanted to see and now I have a list of maybe watch in the right mood kinda things but nothing that competes with other things I could do. And of course it's spring and the days are longer and it's nice to be outside.

        • Price point reached the decision point (Score:5, Interesting)

          by goombah99 ( 560566 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @10:01AM (#62461798)

          When Netflix was cheaper I didn't feel I had to micro manage whether I was subscribing this month or not. So I'd just subscribe even if I didn't have any must see TV. But since they raised prices I turn it off unless there's something in my list I must watch. I think on average I subscribe less that half of the time now so the price raises were a net loss for them in my house

        • Anything good has already been canceled or the streaming license has expired. You can definitely reach the end of what Netflix has to offer. Combine that with a hesitancy to start a new series until it's confirmed they will finish it. Looks pretty grim for Netflix.

      • Re:Too much money (Score:4, Funny)

        by timeOday ( 582209 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @10:03AM (#62461810)

        I wouldn't mind the cost if they had more material on there.

        What's that, you say, you want less material? We're on it!

        Netflix to Start "Pulling Back" Content Spend After Losing Subscribers In Earnings Miss [hollywoodreporter.com]

        • Netflix: What? Consumers are turned off by the high price? Lets add some advertisements and remove content! That will definitely make them happy!

      • I'm honestly not sure how much longer I'll even bother. I don't watch TV like I used to, my entertainment has shifted back to reading, and frankly I feel like I've pretty much watched everything on Netflix worth watching. The same goes for Prime. The new releases seem pretty dull or repetitive and don't justify the mounting prices.

      • I know DVDs aren't cool anymore, but as Netflex started losing content to other streaming services (like Starz and Disney), we switched to DVD.com (formerly Netflix DVD). DVD.com still has all the wide breadth of content that they had from the beginning.

      • Re: (Score:3)

        by jwhyche ( 6192 )

        I wouldn't mind the cost if they had more material on there.

        Tell me about it. There used to be a time when Netflix was the go to place for content. It has been over four months since I have seen something on Netflix I wanted to watch. The only reason I still pay for it is because other people in the house still find value in it.

        Maybe if they value it I should let them pay for it.

      • my complaint is half the time I find some series on there I'm really into, they cancel it

    • Yeah, adding insult to injury - the Canadian version of Netflix has less content. You're stuck watching Schitt's Creek or Community, unless you VPN.

  • Also, they are woke? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by memory_register ( 6248354 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @09:05AM (#62461588)
    To quote Elon Musk, "This woke mind virus is making Netflix unwatchable."

    Perhaps Elon is correct? I tried renewing my subscription for one show I like, and ended up cancelling a week later when I finished watching. There was nothing else that looks appealing or interesting, but a lot of things that clearly didn't. Are they sacrificing their quality to goals of equity and inclusion?

    • Censorship is basically forcing what would otherwise be an opinion.

      I personally find green to be my favorite color. I don't believe it's morally correct to just stand by and allow people to go through life choosing their own favorite color.

      I've been erasing as much content that deals with the other colors as I can. But now my subscriber base is mostly only filled with the saturated market of people that like the color green.

      What can I do *shrug*?

    • Re:Also, they are woke? (Score:5, Informative)

      by Impy the Impiuos Imp ( 442658 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @09:20AM (#62461648) Journal

      Partially. Their initial business model that led to explosive growth involved renting the past 70 years of TV syndication and prosaic movie rentals.

      Once that turned them into one of the most valuable companies, owners of old stuff either formed their own streaming service, or leased content to startups with furious cash to spend building market.

      At that point, Netflix turned into another TV network, generating its own content, with all the associated mediocrity. A few hits which people burn through. Much baloney sandwiches people do not clamor for.

      People would rather re-watch hits than brand spankin' new baloney filler. And Netflix no longer has most of those, being outbid by giant pots of gold they used to offer themselves.

      As for woke, in a rare moment of honesty some years back, one of their execs admitted their internal tracking showed people did not like it, then doubled down on Netflix-qua-America-needs-a-learnin' as core mission.

      • Re: (Score:3)

        by DarkOx ( 621550 )

        Well this is always been the bottom line fundamental issue when it comes to this business. Its what under pins the piracy discussion as well. The stuff simply isn't worth what the asking price is because there is already so much good content out there. The same is largely true of books.

        There is of course a timeliness to some entertainment and artistic works. So there will always be a market for some new content; but the reality is far to much is being produced because existing copyright law, and industry

      • Re:Also, they are woke? (Score:4, Interesting)

        by Xylantiel ( 177496 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @10:36AM (#62461922)
        What happens when all those other services die when their venture capital runs out? This seems like the reality - netflix is getting pummeled because other services are being run at a loss. It seems like at some point the media production companies are going to figure out that they are actually making less money and reaching less viewers in a fractured streaming media landscape like we have today. As long as netflix can make it through the hump, they can just start their licenses back up once the other services burn through their capital.
        • Apple has infinity dollars to spend....they can push Apple TV at a loss forever.

        • Re: (Score:3)

          by torkus ( 1133985 )

          Yeah, then you'll have streaming aggregators ... one price, one login, no commercials (at first), super easy with everything all together for less than individual subscriptions. They could probably even sell or provide a simple hardware solution to help, nothing more than a small box you plug the cables into.

          You could call it a cable box and call it cable TV! What an idea!! /s

          TBH I think many content owner/creators realized just how much netflix was worth and how trivial (in context at scale ofc) the back

          • Absolutely nothing, you're right. However, neither do the others. I mean Disney+ has great franchises with Marvel, Star Wars etc., but I'm not going to pay just for that channel. I wanted the goddamn aggregator, which is what Netflix was. Now that it's hard to get a decently-costed, legal aggregator... guess what. Couchtuner and the likes exist, it's not as convenient, but then I don't need to pay 4 different streaming services.

            In the end it just feels like an eternal cycle. We'll live through many years
        • I think that's Amazon's plan with the way you can subscribe to additional video feeds within their video app. It doesn't make much sense to me to subscribe to HBO via Amazon instead of directly but I can see why Amazon would have designed it that way for the future.

        • What happens when all those other services die when their venture capital runs out? This seems like the reality - netflix is getting pummeled because other services are being run at a loss.

          Apple, Amazon, Disney can afford to run their streaming empires at a loss indefinitely because they have other profitable lines of business. They can view their streaming services as a perk that they provide alongside their primary services, a marketing expense that brings them more overall customers, instead of as a separate division that is losing money.

          The other services will fade away, or be absorbed as their money runs out -but not the big three. Will netflix be able to compete with these three long-

    • Not even close.
      Netflix has been losing content for a long while now. I am surprise it took this long.
      If anything, they didn't make enough 'woke bullshit' to cover the content they lost.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by ksheff ( 2406 )
        No shit. It pisses me off whenever Netflix or some other streaming service decides to yank content. The Lifehacker "what's coming to and leaving ServiceX this month" articles should not have a "leaving" section.
        • They don't 'yank' content. Whatever licensing agreement they have for it comes to its end.

          • They don't 'yank' content. Whatever licensing agreement they have for it comes to its end.

            Hmm... If only licensing agreements could be renewed.

            (Not arguing, just noting.)

            • Comment removed based on user account deletion

              • They often can't. You think Disney wants their stuff on Netflix now they have their own streaming service? Likewise HBO?

                Sure, but is part of that because Netflix wants/ed too much money to carry content and helped push those companies into creating their own platforms? I think Netflix was/is too greedy, they thought their platform was too unique for others to replicate, and/or that people wouldn't want to subscribe to multiple services? That last one does apply to me. I only have Amazon Prime as I also use it buy stuff I can't (easily or literally) get locally and have no interest in subscribing to multiple services, even

                • Your understanding of licensing agreements is backwards.

                  Netflix does not charge creators to carry their content. Netflix PAYS to carry the content.

                  • Your understanding of licensing agreements is backwards.

                    Netflix does not charge creators to carry their content. Netflix PAYS to carry the content.

                    Right, of course -- duh. Thanks. Perhaps they weren't willing to pay enough then.

              • Just to say, Disney doesn't have an awful lot of content for adults that don't watch Marvel - pretty much zero in fact. Yes, I guess they do alright from their established markets but surely they need to offer more substantial programming to stay competitive?

                • Of course they do... they put it on their other channels. Hulu and ESPN+ are Disney owned streaming services that operate under not-Disney names to keep the core brand "clean".

        • It was the expiration of licensing agreements. Look at the Marvel content like Jessica Jones and Daredevil. Whether you like them or not, when Disney introduced Disney+ they started working on taking back Marvel and Star Wars content, I think the Han Solo film was the last Star Wars asset to remain on Netflix, and now I think it's gone as well. Star Trek the same with Paramount floating its own service. Netflix was king when there was little in the way of streaming competition, but when Disney and the netwo

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by torkus ( 1133985 )

            In a fun twist of irony, the last season of better call saul...isn't on netflix!

            (sorry)

            • And that's the crux of the problem. Studios themselves can now shop around and look for the best deal. The problem for me at least is that there are all these good shows scattered across a half dozen streaming platforms, but none of them have enough shows that I find that compelling. Maybe it's just me, I'm a lot less interested in watching TV than I used to be. Even with a damned good series like Better Call Saul or The Expanse, I simply don't have as much interest in actually watching a show. I'll dedicat

    • Ostensibly, Disney is also being boycotted for being "too woke". Funny thing is, every time I check the app which lists the wait times of the various attractions, the parks are still completely packed.

      Netflix is not a sporting goods store that misunderstood its customer demographics and went anti-2A. It's a entertainment service that used to offer a wide variety of content. They've lost the rights to much of what they use to have (ironically, some of it to so-called "woke" Disney and Paramount), and as t

      • Re:GWGB is sour grapes (Score:5, Insightful)

        by ksheff ( 2406 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @10:01AM (#62461796) Homepage
        The people boycotting Disney probably haven't been customers in decades. They'll forget about it in a few months anyway when the nutjob echo chamber moves on to the next fake outrage to keep people worked up.
        • Perhaps you are incorrect? We have had numerous families we know that are Disney die-hards (once a year park trips, all the movies in the theatre) just... stop. They cancelled their cruises/trips and have just stopped being overt about their Disney fandom. Will it last? Who knows, but at least two couples told us that Disney had lost their trust. Pretty hard to rebuild that.

          I know it is tempting to be dismissive about views you don't agree with, but this feels a lot bigger than 'fake outrage'. When you sta

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by mjwx ( 966435 )

        Ostensibly, Disney is also being boycotted for being "too woke". Funny thing is, every time I check the app which lists the wait times of the various attractions, the parks are still completely packed.

        Netflix is not a sporting goods store that misunderstood its customer demographics and went anti-2A. It's a entertainment service that used to offer a wide variety of content. They've lost the rights to much of what they use to have (ironically, some of it to so-called "woke" Disney and Paramount), and as the expression goes, content is king.

        Netflix is just losing customers to an increasingly long list of streaming competitors, ever since it dawned on Hollywood that they don't need a middleman to stream their content.

        This is exactly why I dumped Netflix 5 years ago. Lack of content. I used to use a browser extension to watch US Netflix that had 10 times the content of the Australian one but when they made that hard I just cancelled it and went back to channel BT.

    • Hey, now "Putin did it!", despite "Cuties" being in court and "He's Expecting" on trending.

      Only 30% of Americans aren't repulsed by that and less internationally.

      But at least they won't get yelled at by the HR intern while they go broke! The shareholders must be thrilled.

    • The only mind virus I've noticed is this notion that everything in the world revolves around politics. Most people aren't cancelling Netflix over their politics (whatever those may be).

      Nothing has changed politically about Netflix since it began producing its own content almost 10 years ago. Rather, it has increasingly lost rights to non-Netflix produced content as major studios have realized that they no longer need a middleman to distribute their content and have refused to renew or priced Netflix out. Ne

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by DarkOx ( 621550 )

      To some degree its a rock and hard place.

      Its *more* though not exclusively an issue with the left ( see the current conservative movement against Disney). The problem is if Netflix actually produced a say a film where "a young man struggles with homosexuality, finds faith and overcomes his disordered desires" it would not be enough for anyone to just not watch, they'd have a riot on their hands. You can't even side step the issue by just avoid hot button subjects now either, because what those are shifts so

    • He's not. Which shows are so "woke" as to cause subscriber drop? Was it the show about if cakes look like things? Reruns of Seinfeld? I saw someone say the documentary series about National Parks was "woke" because it's narrated by Barack Obama.

      Netflix is losing subs because some of their shows can be quite good but there's so many that it can get drowned out by the crap and their feature film division is pretty miss except for things that have big existing talent behind them and even some of those are pr

    • The spectrum of shows and movies available on Netflix is much broader then has ever been available on broadcast TV or even on cable. There are plenty of conservative shows, such as "The Ranch," as well as more liberal shows or movies, such as "Prom," and major historical titles, like "Seinfeld." I'm not so much defending Netflix as I am sick of the whining. Never in the history of TV have viewers been able to find so much content tailor-made just for their tastes and on-demand whenever they want. When I was

  • Numbers Must Always Go Up (Score:5, Insightful)

    by lilTimmy ( 6807660 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @09:16AM (#62461622)
    This is just the usual. Corporate thinks their numbers should go up... forever... always up. You know there are a limited number of subscribers in the world. Once you have them all you can't go up anymore.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Junta ( 36770 )

      While it's true they can't go *up*, it's not a good sign for them to go *down*.

      In this case, there's a whole lot to point to that suggests Netflix doesn't have a promising future unless they manage to somehow acquire or be acquired by a company with a rich back-catalog. Having a compelling library starting from scratch will realistically take decades (good shows are rare, drive engagement when new, but don't fill the time so well) They might have had a shot if they had accepted Starz request for Netflix t

      • While it's true they can't go *up*, it's not a good sign for them to go *down*.

        In this case, there's a whole lot to point to that suggests Netflix doesn't have a promising future [...]

        They actually did go up by 500,000 subscribers. Then that whole sanctions thing cut off the 700,000 subscribers in Russia. A net loss of 200,000 subscribers, caused by international politics.

        Growth of 500,000 subscribers in the western world. Hardly a sign of failure.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Alumoi ( 1321661 )

      Once you have them all you can't go up anymore.

      Unless you raise the price.


  • People Like Elon Musk and Bill Ackman may have fucked the stock holders here. Ackman said he bought loads in January, Must bought a massive stake as well.

    You know what happened later? The stock rallied...but now having lost subscribers for the frist time ever in a quarter a massive 20% dive happens.Coincidence?

    Netflix subscriptions are up YoY - but competition is mounting. HBO Max, Disney+, Paramount+ etc.

    Just imagine this is a snapshot of TSLA in the future when serious competition arrives.(already h

  • Canceling the biggest canceller, doh (Score:5, Insightful)

    by cpaalman ( 696554 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @09:19AM (#62461644)
    Maybe Netflix would have less people cancelling their service if Netflix themselves didn't cancel content before it gets a chance to settle in and find a fanbase. I refuse to watch a Netflix series now until it has a few seasons under its belt, and that makes me part of the problem to build a fanbase and hopefully get renewed, but the rug has been pulled out far too many times. I activate Netflix for just a few months a year during the winter season, and even that is becoming less and less.

    When Netflix cancels things weeks after release, there is basically zero opportunity for a fanbase to get established.

    • Re:Canceling the biggest canceller, doh (Score:4, Interesting)

      by EvilSS ( 557649 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @09:36AM (#62461710)
      I find this aspect of Netflix so damn frustrating, especially since it was Netflix, back when they bought most of their shows from other networks, that led to a lot of shows getting final seasons to wrap up their stories because the producers knew Netflix preferred to buy shows with a completed story arc, so the extra money for a final season, even if it was often short, was worth it for a show that would otherwise get cancelled without a proper ending.

      Now they are basically the Google of television, killing anything that isn't an instant hit. I won't start a show from them these days because odds are they will cancel it with no wrap up by the end of season 3 if not sooner, and because they pre-film most of their shows, if the writers don't know ahead of time it's doomed, you end up with a abrupt end with no closure.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      Netflix used to tout the "long tail" as a way to keep shows alive, even if they were not instant hits. They seem to have abandoned that and adopted the Fox method of cancelling shows if they aren't instant mega-hits, before even the first season has finished broadcasting.

      Netflix also doesn't do recaps, so a year later when you have forgotten everything that happened last season you have to go looking for a refresher on YouTube. A quick "last season on..." would really help stave off the desire to wait until

    • This is very true but this has been the case with television production forever. Firefly was not that all long ago in reality and so many shows especially on broadcast are at the whim of the networks.

      It was a lucky break that "The Expanse", by all accounts a very good show, got it's second life on Amazon otherwise it could have easily ended up in the scrap bin after 4 seasons, incomplete forever. "Deadwood" was probably the best western show ever put on TV and it had it's legs cut off when it needed just

    • Oh this...so much this...I look at the content that is there now and I'm just not thrilled by it. I'm now more interested in Paramount+, AMC+ and others. Netflix is gone as soon as I finish the last cancelled series that I haven't finished watching. All the new content is lackluster compared to what others are now coming out with and committed to. Even Amazon was more committed to some series than Netflix (and that's saying something).

    • You make a really great point that I hadn't considered - I find myself not trusting a Netflix series for the same reason. Why invest in a story that is going to get squashed before it can grow?
  • The "barrier to entry" doesn't even exist. Services like Plex and the Roku Channel (buy a cheap Roku TV) add huge numbers of channels at no cost. Netflix has unique, innovative material, but if it went away tomorrow, I wouldn't even notice.
  • I was surprised it took them so long to consider this. In a few years, the streaming services will be free, with advertisements every 5 minutes. Want less ads? Pay more.

  • get rid of the HD up change and maybe the 4K one

  • While I will use a free service that is ad supported, I will not under any circumstances pay for services that also run ads. Itâ(TM)s why I donâ(TM)t use anything under the Hulu/Disney umbrella and why I canceled cable.

  • I have a subscription and are considering cancelling because there just isn't that much good content on there. My 9 year old nephew and niece weren't watching children things on there I probably would have already done so. I pay about $15 which is not much but considering that I only watch a few hours a month at best it is still not really worth it.

  • If you havent already been watching (the stock, not the service), Netflix stock cratered 50% in January, part of a larger selloff.

    The lack of subscribership is NOT the reason for the selloff. Something else is afoot.

  • Gas & groceries and paying utility bills are far more likely important

  • Because Elon tweeted a reply to the /. tweet for this story.

    Naturally he and Fox blame it on being "unwatchable" because it's "woke". Netflix is as "woke" as or as "unwoke" as the shows we choose to watch. I never see "woke" crap on Netflix because Netflix has a general idea of what I like and doesn't suggest them to me.

    I read way too much Fox News.

    Elon Musk rips Netflix for 'woke mind virus' making it 'unwatchable' as shares nosedive [foxbusiness.com]

    You don't want to look at the comments there.

  • Funny, it looks more like voting with our wallets. What do Orange Agents have against democracy and freedom, anyhow? I thought voting with our wallets was a sign of freedom?

  • I would love to use their disc service more, to get high bitrate video and lossless audio, but they have NEVER added 4k content! They are even still calling it "dvd netflix" tho they've had blurays for >10 years now. I guess they think their consumers are too ignorant to know what bluray is, after 15 years of existing.

  • autoplay, no stars, reviews nuked, no 4k blurays (Score:5, Insightful)

    by nester ( 14407 ) on Wednesday April 20, 2022 @12:18PM (#62462294)

    The user experience has been in decline for years. The autoplay in their streaming app has got to be some scheme to gin-up view #s. Everyone hates it. You have to speed-read the description before that Netflix bong sound kicks in for all their content. Infuriating.

    They removed star ratings, and dumbed it down to a bool thumbs up/down.

    They rm -rf'd their user reviews, which I've found to be more reliable than profession reviews.

    No 4k blurays (mentioned in my other post). WTF.

    Loss of obscure content like old .gov films of nuke tests and 80s movies. Amazon now has some content like that. I find myself watching mostly Amazon.

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by XXeR ( 447912 )

      The user experience has been in decline for years. The autoplay in their streaming app has got to be some scheme to gin-up view #s. Everyone hates it. You have to speed-read the description before that Netflix bong sound kicks in for all their content. Infuriating.

      I totally agree, however they did add the ability to disable this some time ago:

      https://www.businessinsider.co... [businessinsider.com]

  • Too expensive for what you get. Nothing more, nothing less.

    ...laura

  • For me, Netflix films are pretty dire. If the films are a series, they'll always be missing one or two parts, and showing an IMDb score would be good as well - it would save committing to a 5.8 film that had a good blurb but turned out to be rubbish.

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