After witnessing a huge drop in the revenue as well as subscriber count in the last quarter, Netflix’s co-CEO Reed Hastings hinted that they might look into low-priced ad-supported plans to get back on track. Looks like the streaming platform is planning to roll out these subscription plans sooner than expected. As per a report by The New York Times, Netflix might introduce a lower-priced ad-supported tier in the next six months. Also Read - Stranger Things actually turn things upside down: Gateway of India, Empire State Building and more light up
Netflix to introduce an ad-supported tier
Earlier this year, Hastings mentioned in a statement that “One way to increase the price spread is advertising on low-end plans and to have lower prices with advertising. And those who have followed Netflix know that I’ve been against the complexity of advertising and a big fan of the simplicity of subscription. But as much I’m a fan of that, I’m a bigger fan of consumer choice.” However, he suggested that they would think about ad-supported streaming over the “next year or two”. Also Read - WhatsApp gets Stranger Things sticker pack on Android, iOS, Desktop: How to download it
The report reveals that Netflix has told its employees that it will introduce the ad tier in the last three months of 2022. This major change will take place along with a crackdown on password sharing, as it was also one of the reasons that Netflix mentioned for its revenue fall. Also Read - Best comedy shows, films to watch on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus Hotstar
Netflix is not the only streaming platform inclining towards an ad-supported tier, Disney Plus has also confirmed to do the same. As per the official statement, “In a first for Disney’s premier direct-to-consumer streaming service, Disney+ will expand its offerings for consumers by introducing an ad-supported subscription in addition to its option without ads, beginning in the US in late 2022, with plans to expand internationally in 2023.”
For the unversed, Netflix estimates that its passwords were being shared with over 100 million users in households. The streaming service has started testing paid password sharing for accounts in a household.
