Finance

Netflix Gains Subscribers After Password Crackdown

JUL 20 2023·Updated AUG 27

Story

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons

The Facts

Streaming giant Netflix added 5.9M new subscribers in Q2, nearly three times as many as analysts had expected. The streaming giant secured these gains in tandem with a crackdown on password sharing among users.
guardian
Investors had expected only 1.8M subscribers. One investment analyst said that the password crackdown had "supercharged" the platform's user base.
Business Plus
The company said in a letter to shareholders, "We’re seeing healthy conversion of borrower households into full paying Netflix memberships as well as uptake of our extra member feature."
Variety
The price change helped Netflix boost its revenue by 3% for the period to $8.2B, falling below analyst expectations. The company earned $1.49B during Q2 compared with $1.44B last year — earnings per share reportedly came in at $3.29, exceeding the average analyst estimate of $2.85 per share.
Boston Herald
Despite the positive growth figures, investors reacted negatively as Netflix's stock price fell 8% in Wednesday trading, which could be related to the Hollywood strike in part.
Archive
Meanwhile, Netflix's co-CEO Ted Sarandos declined to pinpoint how long Netflix can keep releasing new series and films if the strike continues past Labor Day. "The real point is we need to get this strike to a conclusion so we can continue to move forward," he said.
The Associated Press

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

Despite warnings that Netflix's push to stop password sharing would result in mass cancellations, the company showed a bigger-than-expected growth for Q2. It added almost 6M paying subscribers, which is quite a remarkable turnaround.

BBC News

Narrative B

Netflix's continuous effort to stop password sharing could potentially hurt its competitive edge in various markets. In India, for example, Netflix faces stiff competition from JioCinema, which streams numerous popular shows and movies from NBC, HBO, and Warner Bros. It has yet to be seen if the password-sharing crackdown will ultimately be bad for business.

TechCrunch