It seems that Netflix is shaking things up with the recent news of its first reported loss of subscribers during the first quarter of 2022. As Netflix is currently considering a subscription plan at a lower price, but at the expense of watching ads.
The statement comes during an interview with Netflix’s investors on its Q1 Earnings. Reed Hastings, the co-founder & co-CEO of Netflix, had verbally stated over the previous years of being totally against the idea of advertising when it came to its subscription models but has now stated that the company is now “quite open” to bringing in ads to Netflix. Furthermore, he stated he still is a bigger fan of consumer choice and that an addition of a lower-end subscription plan with ads would be a great choice for consumers who are ad-tolerant. But if not, then you’d still have that choice of having its basic or premium plans with no advertisements.
Just don’t expect it to come anytime soon as Hastings has stated that “it is not a short-term fix” and that bringing in a lower-tier ad-supported subscription plan would phase in over a couple of years. Hastings had also noted that Hulu, Disney, and HBO all have ad-supported plans in their streaming service which have been working out for them. Thus the introduction of an ad-supported plan leaves no doubt for Netflix on working out for them.
Would you pay for an ad-supported subscription plan on Netflix if it meant lower prices? Sound off your thoughts and opinions down in the comments!