Netflix's ad ambitions grow as low-cost plan surges

Netflix connected Wednesday touted a surge successful popularity for its low-cost streaming program with ads arsenic it looks to pat into the lucrative satellite of brands.

The streaming elephantine said it present has much than 190 cardinal monthly progressive viewers watching ads, chiefly done a program that costs $7.99 a month. The lowest outgo ad-free program costs $17.99 a month.

In May, Netflix said it had 94 cardinal monthly progressive users watching ads done the cheaper plan. That translated to astir 170 cardinal monthly progressive viewers, the institution said astatine the time.

However, the Los Gatos, Calif.-based institution is present utilizing a antithetic methodology to measurement its assemblage watching ads, making nonstop comparisons difficult.

Netflix present defines monthly progressive viewers arsenic customers who watched astatine slightest 1 infinitesimal of ads connected Netflix per month. It past multiplies that by the estimated mean fig of radical successful a household. Previously, Netflix had measured monthly progressive users based connected the fig of Netflix profiles watching contented with ads.

The streamer said its erstwhile measurement didn’t exemplify each the radical who were successful the country watching.

“Our determination to viewers means we tin springiness a much broad number of however galore radical are really connected the couch, enjoying our can’t-miss series, films, games and unrecorded events with friends and family,” wrote Amy Reinhard, Netflix’s president of advertising, successful a station connected the streamer’s website Wednesday.

Netflix executives said the maturation successful advertisement viewers was successful enactment with their expectations.

“We are precise satisfied with wherever we are at,” Reinhard said successful a media briefing Wednesday. “We deliberation determination is simply a batch of accidental to turn connected this program astir the world, and we’re going to proceed to marque definite that we are offering our customers a large acquisition and a large buying acquisition connected the advertizing side.”

Netflix began its foray into ad-supported streaming successful 2022, aft it received unit from investors to diversify however it makes revenue. Previously, Netflix chiefly made wealth done subscriptions and for galore years had been ad-adverse.

The institution said past period it was connected way to much than treble its advertisement gross successful 2025, but did not mention circumstantial figures. Netflix Co-CEO Greg Peters said successful an net presumption successful October that the advertisement gross is inactive tiny comparative to the size of the company’s subscription revenues, but advertisers are excited astir Netflix’s increasing scale.

“We spot plentifulness of country for maturation ahead,” Peters said.

On Wednesday, Netflix said it is expanding its options for advertisers, including demographic targeting successful areas specified arsenic education, marital presumption and household income.

Netflix besides said it has partnered with brands, including brewing institution Peroni Nastro Azzurro, successful ads for its romanticist drama bid “Emily successful Paris,” and tested dynamic advertisement insertion with programs specified arsenic WWE Raw this 4th and volition connection that diagnostic successful the U.S. and different countries for NFL Christmas Gameday.

Many streamers person been expanding the outgo of their subscriptions successful bid to go much profitable. Earlier this twelvemonth Netflix raised the prices connected plans.