Netflix Throws Out Cheaper $9.99 Ad-Free Plan
By Movieguide® Contributor
Netflix announced that it would no longer offer its $9.99 ad-free plan, leaving users to choose between cheaper, ad-filled options, or a more expensive ad-free plan.
Users still have the options of a $6.99 advertising plan, a $15.49 ad-free plan and a $19.99 premium plan.
The Netflix FAQ page states “the Basic plan is no longer available for new or rejoining members. If you are currently on the Basic plan, you can remain on this plan until you change plans or cancel your account.”
This move might push users to the cheaper plan, but Deadline stated that it wouldn’t “compromise the business since the vast majority of Netflix subscribers already take the $15.99 plan.”
The change doesn’t come as much of a surprise as the $9.99 plan was recently removed in Canada. The Verge reported that “in the US and UK, Netflix also started hiding the basic plan when new users signed up to the platform.”
Netflix launched their ad-supported plan last year in an effort to boost revenue and, according to the platform, a quarter of new subscribers opt for the ad-supported plan.
“The signals are promising: engagement on our ads plan is similar to our comparable non-ads plans,” Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters said of the ad plan’s launch. “That’s critical because it all starts and ends with consumers.”
Movieguide® previously reported on Netflix’s recent business strategies:
Netflix recently revealed their future plans and the innovations they hope will keep them as the most popular streaming service available.
The most notable change in the company came when Netflix announced they would be cracking down on password sharing in March of last year. This change came with the introduction of an ad-supported subscription tier, in an effort to provide a cheaper option for users who had previously been using someone else’s account. This crackdown has been tested by Netflix in multiple markets and is planned to be fully rolled out by June of this year.
The company, however, does not expect that the crackdown on password sharing will do much to increase its subscriber count; Netflix understands that it has all but saturated its subscriber numbers from its current markets, mainly the U.S. Thus, the company plans to broaden its original content, creating shows and movies for primarily international audiences to continue to boost its subscriber count.
Netflix also hopes to entice viewers by offering access to live events. The streaming site’s first experiments with this failed. A LOVE IS BLIND livestream didn’t open when clicked and a live-streamed Chris Rock Comedy Special crashed after millions of viewers joined, however, the company views this as an important category to invest in to continue to stand out from other streaming sites.
