Netflix says 70 million users now watch shows with ads

Netflix said 70 million viewers watch its ad-supported shows each month, nearly double the total since May.

More than 50 percent of new subscribers are opting for Netflix’s ad-supported plan in the countries where it is available, Amy Reinhard, the company’s director of advertising, said in a blog post published Tuesday. The company sees “steady progress” in all twelve countries where the advertising plan is available.

Netflix plans to make advertising a major revenue source to complement subscriptions, but its advertising business is still small compared to peers. The company positioned itself as an alternative to ad-supported TV for years and only introduced advertising when it lost customers in 2022.

Netflix has priced its ad-supported subscription as a cheaper alternative for budget-conscious users, a tactic that has fueled steady growth. The company had 40 million monthly active users with advertising plans in May. It ended the third quarter with a total of 282.7 million subscribers.

Some competitors, such as Amazon.com Inc., have asked customers to pay more if they want to skip ads, converting a majority of their video customers to subscriptions with ads.

Like its competitors, Netflix is ​​investing in live programming, such as the National Football League and World Wrestling Entertainment, which will show ads to all its customers, creating additional offerings for marketers.

The company said it has sold out the entire in-game inventory for two live NFL games scheduled for Christmas Day. The gambling site FanDuel and Verizon Communications Inc. are among the major sponsors, with their own characteristics or segments. The day after Christmas, Netflix releases a second season of Squid Game, the South Korean survival drama. It will have multiple advertisers in the 12 countries where the company airs commercials, including Kia Corp. in South Korea.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)