Today Netflix announced that it has seen its subscription growth continue in the 2nd quarter of 2023. This comes as Netflix’s password-sharing crackdown is now in full swing in the 2nd quarter of 2023. This is excellent news for a company that needs to show stockholders some good news.
In the 2nd quarter of 2023, Netflix added 5.9 million subscribers. This is compared to the 1.1 million Netflix added in the 2nd quarter of 2022. Netflix, so its revenue hit $8.2 billion in the 2nd quarter of 2023. In total, Netflix says year over year growth of 8% when looking at subscribers.
Netflix did make it clear that these new subscribers do not count the extra member offers to current subscribers.
Here is what Netflix said about its engagement on Netflix in the 2nd quarter of 2023:
We focus on engagement because it’s the best proxy we have for satisfaction. It’s also closely linked to retention, an important driver of our business. Key for Netflix members is the variety and quality of our content, with the understanding that quality is in the eye of the beholder. We’re often asked “what is a Netflix show?” The answer is one that super serves the audience, leaving them highly satisfied and excited for more. It’s the satirical dramedy Beef (starring Ali Wong and Steven Yeun) and the dating show Love is Blind S4 (both of which were in the Netflix Top 10 throughout April), the romance of Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story and the action of The Night Agent (both of which were in our top 10 throughout May)—stories that could not be more different and yet thrilled millions. The combination of content variety and personalization means that each person easily finds titles they will love.
We learned the importance of variety back in the DVD days, and it’s become even more important with streaming. Because if you aspire to serve hundreds of millions of people all around the world, you can’t program for one set of tastes or sensibilities. You need to invest across genres, cultures and languages. Q2 was a good example of the range to which we aspire. Members could choose dramas like The Diplomat and Sanctuary (Japan), adrenaline-filled action with Arnold Schwarzenegger in FUBAR (followed by Arnold, a documentary about his life) and Fake Profile (Colombia), satire with Black Mirror, sports with the Tour de France: Unchained, romantic young adult comedy with XO Kitty (a TV spinoff from the To All Boys I’ve Loved Before film trilogy) or rap competition with Rhythm & Flow France S2.
Netflix recently has cut the cost of its service in multiple countries and put in new rules to block password sharing. These efforts have not come to the US yet but do seem to be working to help Netflix add subscribers.
Netflix has also seen several big blockbuster originals that have helped drive subscriptions along with its push to crackdown on password sharing.
Netflix also announced that it has stopped selling its cheap basic plan, which was the cheapest way to get an ad-free subscription to Netflix. Now you will need to pay $15.49 for its standard option and the $19.99 premium opinion.
In total, Netflix now has 238.39 million subscribers. Netflix no longer offers guidance on what it expects to happen with subscribers going forward.