Netflix first launched its cheaper $6.99 a month subscription plan for its streaming service that includes ads in November 2022 in the US and 11 other countries. Since then, the Standard with Ads plan, as it is now labeled, has replaced its Basic plan that did not contain ads.
In a press release today, as part of the company"s Upfronts presentation to advertisers, Netflix announced that the Standard with Ads plans now has 40 million worldwide subscribers. That"s well above the five million ad-based subscribers the company said it had at the same time in 2023, and its also well above the 23 million subscribers with the ad-based plan that it announced in January 2024.
Netflix revealed today that 40 percent of all new signups for the service are for the Standard with Ads plan in the countries where that plan is available. Also, over 70 percent of all of the people who stream movies and TV shows with the ad-based Netflix plan watch more than 10 hours of content a month.
In addition, Netflix is expanding its advertising partners. Microsoft was Netflix"s exclusive ad and sales partner when the ad-based plan launched in 2022. Now, Netflix will be working with other digital ad companies, including rival Google. Netflix will also develop its own advertising technology platform for the future.
Netflix also announced a number of new shows, movies, and renewals today. They included a sequel to the hit comedy film Happy Gilmore, with its original star Adam Sandler returning to the title role. The recent sci-fi series 3 Body Problem will also get some additional episodes to wrap up the show but specifics like the number of seasons and episodes were not revealed. Finally, Netflix has signed a deal with the National Football League that will let the service stream two NFL games live on Christmas Day 2024.