Number of new Netflix subscribers is smaller than expected due to price increase

The number of new Netflix subscribers worldwide in the quarter was lower than the company itself expected, especially in regions where the price increase has started. In the US, there was even a decline.

Netflix added 2.7 million new paid subscribers in the quarter, where the company expected to attract 5 million new customers. The number of new subscribers was therefore well below the 5.5 million new customers that Netflix received in the same quarter last year. In the United States, the number of paying customers even fell by 126,000. It was the first time that Netflix had to deal with a declining number of customers in its home country US.

According to the company, the cause of the disappointing figures is the strong growth figures in the first quarter of 2019. When the video service received 9.7 million new paying customers. According to Netflix, that growth led to a decline in the period after. At the same time, the company admits that growth was disappointing, especially in regions with a price increase. In January, the company increased the prices in the US by 1 euro extra per month for the Standard package, while the monthly rate for the Premium package went up there by 2 euros. Increased competition was not a significant factor in the disappointing quarterly figures, Netflix believes.

In the first weeks of the third quarter, the number of customers should grow again as expected. Netflix expects to add 7 million customers worldwide in the current three months, compared to 6.1 million last year. In the US, the service expects to receive 800,000 new subscribers.