The ad-supported Netflix era could begin as soon as October this year, according to a leaked company memo.
A recent drop in subscribers and a precipitous fall in share price forced the company to reveal it was planning to give users the option to subsidise their monthly bill with commercial breaks.
Initially, the company’s top brass had told shareholders that the transition would happen in the next couple of years. However, an internal memo shared with the New York Times speaks of plans to launch during “last three months of the year.”
The company is looking to justify the move – which is somewhat against the original Netflix ethos – by pointing out competitors have done the same in order to give customers more options.
“Every major streaming company excluding Apple has or has announced an ad-supported service,” reads the note, which was shared with the NYT by two separate sources. “For good reason, people want lower-priced options.”
It said that both Hulu and HBO Max (US streaming services) had been able to “maintain strong brands while offering an ad-supported service,” so there’s no reason why Netflix can’t do the same.
A Netflix spokesperson repeated what the company had said initially, saying “we’re exploring an ad-supported plan for those who would be interested, but we’ll still have plans without ads.”
Elsewhere, the leaked memo reiterated the plan to lessen the practice of password sharing, by offering cheap add-on memberships to those perhaps using friends and family log-in details.
Would you consider accepting ads interrupting your favourite Netflix shows in order to save a few quid at a time when the cost of living is soaring? Or will you never go back to commercial interruption again? Let us know @trustedreviews on Twitter.
