Netflix’s new ad-supported tier has crossed the one million subscriber threshold in the U.S. Following its introduction late last year, the entry-level tier appears to be steadily gaining traction.
In November 2022, Netflix introduced its Basic with Ads tier in Canada and other major markets around the world. The monthly subscription service is available for $5.99 CAD and is the cheapest option available by the streamer. According to Bloomberg, the new tier reached over 1 million subscribers in America within the first two months.
Internal data seen by Bloomberg states that Netflix’s monthly active users grew by 500 percent in the first month of the tier’s launch. That number then rose another 50 percent during its second month. It’s said that Netflix has successfully fulfilled its forecasted deliveries to its advertisers, which are helping the ad-supported tier.
The ad-supported tier was introduced as a way to help open the gates to Netflix at a time when the streaming service was experiencing subscriber loss. By dropping the entry price of the subscription, Netflix hoped to attract new users. Additionally, this was paired with the new policy against password sharing. In February, Netflix launched its pair password-sharing feature, enabling those with Standard or Premium plans to add another member to their account for $7.99 CAD each month.
According to recent data, the ad tier now makes up for nearly 20 percent of new sign-ups in the US, according to Antenna. Netflix is said to have roughly 74 million subscribers in the U.S. While Netflix’s ad-supported tier is gaining traction, it is still behind its competitors as far as consumer adoption goes. Per Antenna’s data, U.S. services like HBO Max and the ad tier for Disney+ saw a respective 21 percent and 36 percent of new signups opt for the cheaper, ad-supported option.
Unfortunately, the new data doesn’t break down Canadian subscriptions or the trends of subscribers in Canada. However, given how expensive Netflix’s subscriptions can be (upwards of $20.99 each month) could make a compelling case for new subscribers to gravitate to the Basic with Ads tier.
