Netflix’s ad-supported tier goes live on November 1. According to Variety, the streaming platform is moving up the timeline for the debut of its cheaper plans in an effort to overtake Disney+. This tier is scheduled to go live in early 2023. But, with Disney+ releasing its own version of the ad-supported bundle in the US on December 8 — Disney+ Hotstar already offers a free ad-based plan — Netflix has brought it forward. . Netflix’s upcoming ad-supported tier will cost between $7 (roughly Rs. 560) and $9 (roughly Rs. 720) monthly.
During its Q2 earnings call in July, Netflix revealed its plans to launch an ad-supported tier “around early 2023,” targeting a handful of markets where ad spending was “significant.” Accordingly Diversity, ad-based subscription plans will now be released on November 1 in several countries, including the US, Canada, the UK, France and Germany. The company intends to gradually roll out the service and see how customers respond to it. Currently, there is no word on the India rollout.
“We are still in the early days of determining how to launch the low-cost, ad-supported tier, and no decisions have been made,” a Netflix representative told Variety. The purpose of the price cut is to attract new subscribers to the service, who don’t mind seeing a few ads in exchange for quality content. In the initial phase, Netflix will target around four minutes of advertising per hour, which will be shown before and during the event. But not later.
As mentioned earlier, Netflix has an ad-supported tier expected Prices range from $7 to $9, which is about half of what US audiences typically pay. For $15.49 (around Rs. 1,237), subscribers in the US get access to a standard plan that supports 1080p video streaming on two screens at a time. Netflix hasn’t revealed any details about streaming quality in its upcoming ad-supported category.
In comparison, competitor Disney+’s ad-supported plans start at $7.99 (about Rs. 639), putting it in the same ballpark as Netflix. According to Variety’s sources, the latter is asking the agency for a minimum commitment of $10 million (around Rs 79 crore) in annual ad spend.
Netflix wants to lock in ad buys until September 30th to meet the November 1st deadline/launch date. “For the first phase of the ad tier’s rollout, Netflix will not serve ads based on geography (by country), age, gender, viewing behavior or time of day,” it concluded.
