Netflix adds 16 million subscribers

Netflix added 16 million new subscribers in the first quarter, with the total now at almost 183 million.

Lisa Richwine and Akanksha Rana reported the news for Reuters:

Netflix Inc (NFLX.O) more than doubled its own projections for new customers as quarantined audiences binged on series such as “Tiger King,” but the company predicted a weaker second half of the year if stay-at-home orders to fight the coronavirus are lifted.

The world’s largest streaming service gained 15.8 million paying customers from January through March, bringing its global total to 182.9 million. Netflix had predicted it would add 7 million during the period.

The company warned that it expected fewer new subscribers from July to December compared with a year earlier, however. Many people who would have joined then are likely to have already signed up, executives said.

“We expect viewing to decline and membership growth to decelerate as home confinement ends,” Netflix said in a letter to shareholders.

CBS reported:

Netflix picked up nearly 16 million global subscribers during the first three months of the year, helping cement its status as one of the world’s most essential services in times of isolation or crisis.

The first quarter of the calendar spanned the beginning of stay-at-home orders in the U.S. and around the world, a response to the coronavirus pandemic that apparently led millions to latch onto Netflix for entertainment and comfort when most had nowhere to be but home.

Netflix more than doubled the quarterly growth it had predicted in January, well before the COVID-19 outbreak began to shut down many major economies. It was the biggest three-month gain in the 13-year history of Netflix’s streaming service.

The BBC wrote:

However, the streaming service, which is behind some multi-million dollar productions, said shutdowns have halted “almost all” filming around the world.

And sharp declines in the value of many currencies has meant new subscribers outside of the US, where Netflix is based, are not worth as much to the company as they would have been before the crisis. And that has hurt its international revenue growth.

Nevertheless, the home-entertainment giant’s share price has climbed more than 30% this year as investors bet on on its ability to benefit from people spending more time indoors.

“Netflix is and will continue to be the media company least impacted by Covid-19,” said eMarketer analyst Eric Haggstrom. “Their business is a near perfect fit to a population that is suddenly housebound.”

Demand for streaming has been so high that Netflix last month said it would reduce the quality of its videos in Europe to ease strain on internet service providers. The firm also hired an additional 2,000 customer support staff to handle the increased interest.