Netflix further solidified its status as the king of streaming with an impressive quarter 4 performance in which it added 13 million new subscribers while inking a new deal with the WWE that will soon put it in the live event broadcasting business.
“The streaming giant reported 13 million new subscribers, with revenue of $8.8 billion and operating income of $1.5 billion. The company had reported 9 million new subscribers last quarter, as its crackdown on sharing passwords continued,” noted The Hollywood Reporter.
Quarter 4 proved to be the second-best in the streaming service’s history for subscriber signups just behind its massive bump during the coronavirus pandemic of 2024. In its statement, the company attributed the spike in subscribers to its hard crackdown on password sharing.
“We believe we’ve successfully addressed account sharing, ensuring that when people enjoy Netflix they pay for the service too,” it said.
“We have gotten to the point where paid sharing is just something that we do,” co-CEO Greg Peters said on the company’s earnings call.
As Netflix continues asserting its dominance in the streaming space (something no other company has been able to compete with), the streaming giant said that it will likely see other studios licensing more of their titles. In the tail-end of 2023, for instance, a large number of Warner Bros. and DC titles suddenly appeared on the platform. Disney and NBCU and Paramount will likely follow suit.
“I am thrilled that studios are more open to licensing again, and thrilled to tell them that we are open for business,” co-CEO Ted Sarandos said on the call.
Netflix also said that it will not be in the business of buying major companies or titles.
“As our competitors adjust to these changes [in streaming], it’s logical to expect further consolidation, particularly among companies with large and declining linear networks,” the letter said. “We’re not interested in acquiring linear assets. Nor do we believe that further M&A among traditional entertainment companies will materially change the competitive environment given all the consolidation that has already happened over the last decade (Viacom/CBS, AT&T/Time Warner, Disney/Fox, Time Warner/Discovery, etc.).”
Netflix also scored a major win when it announced on Tuesday it had inked a “10-year, $5 billion deal for WWE Raw, as well as WWE content internationally.” Per THR:
That deal puts Netflix firmly in the live event and sports space, an area it has been exploring but has not dove into with alacrity.
While the WWE deal “feeds the desire to expand live event programming,” Sarandos said, he adds that “I would not look at this as a signal to any change to our sports strategy,” suggesting further sports deals are unlikely for now.
Rather, “this is almost the inverse of Formula 1, a very big and passionate U.S. fanbase, and big room to grow outside of the U.S.”
News of Netflix’s victory comes as other industry contenders have enacted sweeping layoffs.
Paul Roland Bois directed the award-winning feature film, EXEMPLUM, which can be viewed for FREE on YouTube or Tubi. “Better than Killers of the Flower Moon,” wrote Mark Judge. “You haven’t seen a story like this before,” wrote Christian Toto. A high-quality, ad-free stream can also be purchased on Google Play or Vimeo on Demand. Follow him on Twitter @prolandfilms or Instagram @prolandfilms.
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