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Netflix announces price increase for all three of its plans - 9to5Mac

Netflix is hiking its prices once again. Starting today, the cheapest Netflix plan will cost $7.99 per month, while the...

9to5mac.com

Netflix is hiking its prices once again. Starting today, the cheapest Netflix plan will cost $7.99 per month, while the top-of-the-line plan with 4K streaming will cost you a cool $24.99 monthly.

Netflix’s latest price increase​

Here are the details of the impending Netflix price increase, which impacts all three of its plans:

• Standard with ads: $7.99 (up from $6.99) per month
• Standard without ads: $17.99 (up from $15.49) per month
• Premium: $24.99 (up from $22.99) per month

The price increases affect users in the United States, Canada, Portugal and Argentina.

In a letter to shareholders today, Netflix said the price increase will let it continue to invest in programming:

As we continue to invest in programming and deliver more value for our members, we will occasionally ask our members to pay a little more so that we can re-invest to further improve Netflix. To that end, we are adjusting prices today across most plans in the US, Canada, Portugal and Argentina.

Netflix’s latest price increase comes the same day the company reported monster earnings for Q4 2024. The streaming service added 18.9 million new subscribers in the quarter, beating analyst expectations of 9.6 million additions. It now has a whopping 302 million paid subscribers around the world.

Netflix also reported revenue of $10.25 billion, beating estimates of $10.11 billion. Earnings-per-share came in at $4.28, compared to estimates of $4.20. It also declared a $15 billion share buyback program.

Netflix last increased its prices in October 2023, when the Premium tier increased from $19.99 to $22.99 monthly. Shortly thereafter, Netflix discontinued its popular ad-free Basic subscription. This served as an effective price increase for anyone wanting an ad-free Netflix experience, raising the ad-free floor from $11.99 to $15.49 per month (now $17.99 with today’s price hike).

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It's a fucking scam. Record earnings and still they raise prices by roughly 10% (much higher than inflation).

 

[LordCBH]

 

[ForAcademicPurposes]

 

[Nintendo's Witch]

Fuck Netflix

 

[diffusionx]

$25 for the slop that Netflix puts out is INSANE.

 

[Trogdor1123]

A 16% increase is pretty steep… there has to be a point where people start to push back.

 

[near]

302 million subs, content is getting worse and the price is rising.

 

[PrimetimeKnight]

Not too surprising to see a company raise prices and will continue to until there is a substantial decline. Their monthly fee is whatever most are willing to pay and obviously hasn't reached a breaking point yet.

 

[Fbh]

Damn I pay like $6 for it in my country (it's a $12 shared plan I split with my sister) and still often think about dropping it.
Can't imagine paying $18 for it.

 

[ssringo]

Not because I'm interested in Netflix content, just because I can.

 

[j0hnnix]

And the option to add another member is bullshit. They give you the option to be charged an extra 7.99, that's how it should be worded.

 

[Sonik]

lol keep paying them suckers, they'll keep charging you more and more for Netflix slop

 

[Tams]

Imagine paying for Netflix.

 

[Werewolf Jones]

$25 to see something good get cancelled after one season.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Fuck, I never invested in NFLX. Up $120 after hours. About to break $1,000.

 

[IntentionalPun]

That’s like 1 egg per month.

 

[Paltheos]

Just to rub some salt into the wound, Netflix was substantially more profitable in 2024 than 2023. From their (unaudited) income statement:

(in thousands)

	2024	2023
Revenue	$39,000,966	$33,723,297
Operating Income	$10,417,614	$6,954,003
Net Income	$8,711,631	$5,407,990

Pretty favorable operating and profit margins, both of which are big steps up from the year prior.

 

[jakinov]

Whether or not you personally like the content Netflix. Netflix as a service is great value for the price for the general consumer. Netflix releases a new shows and movies almost every week. That's in addition to all the comedy specials, live events, documentaries, and games. People used to pay $13-15 ($20-25 depending on how you adjust for inflation) just to get access to HBO to watch a movie on a schedule and a bit of TV on a schedule at 480P-720P. Netflix top plan today which offers up to 4K HDR cost $23 bucks to watch all the stuff I mentioned on-demand. Again even if you personally don't like it, a lot of people do, Netflix engagement on their content stomps that of their competitors.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Just to rub some salt into the wound, Netflix was substantially more profitable in 2024 than 2023. From their (unaudited) income statement:

(in thousands)

	2024	2023
Revenue	$39,000,966	$33,723,297
Operating Income	$10,417,614	$6,954,003
Net Income	$8,711,631	$5,407,990

Pretty favorable operating and profit margins, both of which are big steps up from the year prior.

Crazy. Rev up about $5.3B. Net Income up $3.3B. I dont follow the company, but whatever critical mass business strategies and sub plan gains thy are doing are practically going right to the bottom line.

 

[squallheart]

Synology for the win!

 

[jakinov]

Just to rub some salt into the wound, Netflix was substantially more profitable in 2024 than 2023. From their (unaudited) income statement:

(in thousands)

	2024	2023
Revenue	$39,000,966	$33,723,297
Operating Income	$10,417,614	$6,954,003
Net Income	$8,711,631	$5,407,990

Pretty favorable operating and profit margins, both of which are big steps up from the year prior.

They told investors they are using the extra money to re-invest into the business to add more value. Which they've historically done by expanding their output of shows, moving into movies, expanding movies, games, etc. They've explicitly said that the cycle normally goes, elevated churn due to price hike, re-invest revenue, value goes up, most people come back and even more people sign up because the service now offers more.

 

[Mr Reasonable]

It's a fucking scam. Record earnings and still they raise prices by roughly 10% (much higher than inflation).

I haven't paid attention and I'm not a Netflix subscriber so I don't care, but aren't they a company that was just burning through investor cash for years, losing money constantly?

To that end, is it a scam or just time for those who bankrolled the company to get paid?

 

[MayauMiao]

Well seeing how I barely touch Netflix I wouldn't mind stop monthly subscription and subscribe for a month 2-3 times per year. I've got plenty of cheaper alternatives to pick, Netflix price increase made it easier.

 

[ReBurn]

Well seeing how I barely touch Netflix I wouldn't mind stop monthly subscription and subscribe for a month 2-3 times per year. I've got plenty of cheaper alternatives to pick, Netflix price increase made it easier.

It's the way to do it. No need to keep multiple services going.

 

[Paltheos]

They told investors they are using the extra money to re-invest into the business to add more value. Which they've historically done by expanding their output of shows, moving into movies, expanding movies, games, etc. They've explicitly said that the cycle normally goes, elevated churn due to price hike, re-invest revenue, value goes up, most people come back and even more people sign up because the service now offers more.

This isn't consistent with their income statement and balance sheet, at least for 2024. Their total increase in operating expenses amounted to $1.8B, but stock buybacks (changes in treasury stock) totaled $6.2B.*

*Calculated from the same source as my previous post

 

[Spukc]

$25 for the slop that Netflix puts out is INSANE.

HAVE YOU WATCHED SQUIDGAME SEASON2??

IT IS SO GOOD

IT’S ALSO IN MODERN WARFARE BLACK OPS SIX AS A EXTRA PAID MINI BATTLEPASS!

 

[Donald mac Ronald]

Imagine paying 24$ a month for netflix. And you can't even share it.

 

[Shifty1897]

Thanks for the reminder to cancel Netflix, I got the standard plan a few months ago and can confirm it's all still garbage.

 

[Quasicat]

Well seeing how I barely touch Netflix I wouldn't mind stop monthly subscription and subscribe for a month 2-3 times per year. I've got plenty of cheaper alternatives to pick, Netflix price increase made it easier.

That’s where I’m at. I do have a Plex server, but once every 6 months I’ll subscribe to something and watch the exclusive stuff. I just finished Disney Plus for the Star Wars Skeleton Crew show and will see what’s going on in June to see what I’ll subscribe to next.

 

[jakinov]

This isn't consistent with their income statement and balance sheet, at least for 2024. Their total increase in operating expenses amounted to $1.8B, but stock buybacks (changes in treasury stock) totaled $6.2B.*

*Calculated from the same source as my previous post

I don't think you can look at those two aggregates to paint an accurate picture here of whether or not they are using the extra revenue to re-invest. Business expenses can go down for various reasons such as investment in technology, cutting costs, etc. The money from stock buy backs can also come from cash and it's value can be driven up by stock prices going up like they have been. There's also a lot of nuance here with timing, offsetting the churn, what regions are effected, what plans are effected and the pricing in that individual region.

My point is that historically Netflix has told investors it's not just free money for these price increases but that they'll reinvest the money to increase value of the service to customers like they said today. When Netflix was $10-$15 bucks it didn't have a first-run movie and tv show coming out every weeks with random comedy specials and live events. There's a big difference in the value proposition today versus when it was cheaper.

 

[MikeM]

Damn. Might need to buy some stock

 

[Rival]

We have the pheasant ad tier and it’s actually not too bad. I’m getting older so I use the ads to take a pee break.

 

[Jsisto]

Wow this reminds me I really should cancel my netflix. I hardly ever even use it and mostly just watch stuff on YouTube nowadays. I bet they make bank off of passive Netflix subscribers like myself that barely use it but never cancel it because it doesn’t break bank.

Edit: Done. Thanks for sharing this.

 

[Melchiah]

I cancelled my subscription in October, when they raised the price on the same day they released a new horror movie only for US customers. Good riddance. I haven't regretted the decision, since I get UHD playback around three times cheaper on Amazon Prime and SkyShowtime. Plus, they have a much better selection of new (horror) movies, 80s-90s movies/series, and generally better content for a more mature taste. Whereas Netflix mostly offers garbage for teens, and the few good series they have get cancelled, like Mindhunter.

Funnily enough, since their policy is to wipeout everything on your account when you unsubscribe, I will never return there. In contrast, when I revisited Apple TV+ recently during the free weekend, everything was exactly how it was when I left off.

 

[mitch1971]

Dream on netflix.

 

[Dirk Benedict]

$25 for the slop that Netflix puts out is INSANE.

That and they can't even fucking finish a season with some of these shows, mass culling... I dropped these bastards a few years ago.

 

[V1LÆM]

I never stay subbed. When I don't mind paying it or if I know there are a bunch of things I want to watch then I join and binge as much as I can in that one month. Can't remember the last time I subbed. If I've only subbed for 3 months in the last year then that's £1.25 - £4.25 / month. I'm paying less than what I would for a year of ad tier.

For Amazon I just wait until they offer me a free trial of Prime then go watch a bunch of stuff that week.

The only subscriptions I pay for every month are my phone plan, apple music, icloud storage, and my email.

 

[Mr Reasonable]

I wouldn't mind stop monthly subscription and subscribe for a month 2-3 times per year.

No need to keep multiple services going.

once every 6 months I’ll subscribe to something and watch the exclusive stuff

I never stay subbed

It seems obviously the right way to do it.

When we stopped AppleTV and Netflix, we said we might buy a month here and there, but never have. I wonder how many people do the same - go and never come back?

TBH, I'm surprised that all subscription services don't charge one price for a month sub and offer a heavily discounted annual sub to offer better value to those who come and go, but overall get more money from them. Because they don't, I assume that most subscription customers do just stay signed up year round.

 

[AJUMP23]

I think I am done, nothing they have is worth $25 a month....ever

 

[ReBurn]

It seems obviously the right way to do it.

When we stopped AppleTV and Netflix, we said we might buy a month here and there, but never have. I wonder how many people do the same - go and never come back?

TBH, I'm surprised that all subscription services don't charge one price for a month sub and offer a heavily discounted annual sub to offer better value to those who come and go, but overall get more money from them. Because they don't, I assume that most subscription customers do just stay signed up year round.

These companies count on people forgetting that they're signed up and just pull in money from them for nothing. I think it would be nice if they had to automatically end recurring payments if the customer didn't watch anything for 30 days. It's not like there's a benefit to staying subscribed for longer periods.

 

[lachesis]

Subscription services = new cable service in disguise…. Well at least it’s easy to cancel, that’s the good part.

 

[diffusionx]

Whether or not you personally like the content Netflix. Netflix as a service is great value for the price for the general consumer. Netflix releases a new shows and movies almost every week. That's in addition to all the comedy specials, live events, documentaries, and games. People used to pay $13-15 ($20-25 depending on how you adjust for inflation) just to get access to HBO to watch a movie on a schedule and a bit of TV on a schedule at 480P-720P. Netflix top plan today which offers up to 4K HDR cost $23 bucks to watch all the stuff I mentioned on-demand. Again even if you personally don't like it, a lot of people do, Netflix engagement on their content stomps that of their competitors.

When was the last time Netflix put out a truly great TV show or movie? I watched some of their documentaries when I briefly subbed, it's all 4-6/10 surface level junk. The TV shows and movies are all mid. It really is total slop. It's designed for background noise.

 

[Nitty_Grimes]

Gotta pay for the wrestling I suppose even if you watch it or not.

 

[Mr Hyde]

I'm so glad I unsubbed from Netflix. Endless trash that is also becoming absurdly expensive. Hell no, I say to that.

 

[Trogdor1123]

Gotta pay for the wrestling I suppose even if you watch it or not.

I forgot about that. How is it?

 

[Sardaukarama]

Cut that shit off 2 yrs ago and looking at its output and pricing I'm glad ! Only things I have left are disney/hulu and peacock which are included in our phone plan otherwise they can go and swivel too!

 

[Nitty_Grimes]

I forgot about that. How is it?

Not a fan dude sorry but they paid a couple of billion for the rights?

 

[Renoir]

damn... that PrimeEvil show was good. The money is going somewhere. Some of it anyway.

 

[jakinov]

When was the last time Netflix put out a truly great TV show or movie? I watched some of their documentaries when I briefly subbed, it's all 4-6/10 surface level junk. The TV shows and movies are all mid. It really is total slop. It's designed for background noise.

"truly great" is subjective just like in video games. In other people, eyes what you see as 4-6/10 surface level junk is 8-10/10 greatness for others. There are shows designed for background noise too but that's not really a bad thing as there will be consumers who want shows like that.

Netflix makes mega-hit show or two almost every year. Their content might not always be for you but at a high level the masses enjoy their content. People continue to pay high prices and join the service at record numbers (net 19 million new subs in the last 3 months). They have shows that get recognized at award shows and have been consistently first or second in awards won per year.

 

[ShadyAcshuns]

I really don't care because I'll just sub when Stranger Things final season airs and watch it then cancel it.