Co-CEO Ted Sarandos said Thursday that Netflix is in talks with several companies to establish ad partnerships. The streaming giant is looking to counter slowing subscriber growth by launching a cheaper plan, but with ads.
Sarandos expressed concern to those users who decided not to subscribe to the platform due to these prices.
“So far, we’ve left a large segment of customers who think Netflix is too expensive for them, and who don’t mind watching ads,” he said, off the table.
The company suggested creating a cheaper method, with advertisements and without modifying the already existing method. The goal is to create an ad experience that is more integrated and less interrupted than traditional TV ads.
However, Netflix is not the first streaming service to use this method. In fact, some of its biggest competitors have also resorted to or are planning to resort to banner ads to get lower paying subscribers.
HBO Max, for example, already has a plan with ads, which includes original products without ads. The new service is part of a broader expansion strategy that seeks to reach 39 countries this year, in both Latin America and the Caribbean and Europe.
Disney has also joined in the commitment to economic plans. The company has even gone so far as to reveal how many ads it will run: an average of four minutes per hour. Meanwhile, programs aimed at a preschool audience will not contain advertisements.
Hulu is a video-on-demand subscription service owned by Disney that is geared primarily toward series and entertainment programs such as Reality Shows, talk shows, or game shows, but also includes movies and documentaries. They pioneered offering a paid subscription without ads and a slightly cheaper subscription with ads.
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