Netflix raised prices—and lost 126,000 U.S. subscribers
For the first time since 2011, Netflix lost U.S. subscribers.
The streaming video service said on Wednesday it lost 126,000 subscribers in the U.S. in the second quarter of 2019. The loss in U.S. subscribers wasn't helped by the underwhelming 2.7 million global subscribers the company added — about half short of the 5 million it was expecting.
The easiest thing to do is point fingers at the growing number of streaming services competing with Netflix. For example, Disney+, available this holiday season starting at $6.99 a month, has everyone already claiming they'll dump Netflix.
However, the drop in U.S. subscribers and lackluster global growth was largely due to more boring reasons, according to Netflix CEO Reed Hastings. In his investor's note, Hastings said price hikes that went into effect in January contributed to the weaker-than-expected quarter results. The "Basic" plan increased from $8 per month to $9, the "Standard" two-screen plan jumped from $11 to $13, and the "Premium" plan increased from $14 to $16. Read more...
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