Back at the beginning of November, Netflix launched its ad-based subscription tier, part of a major push by the streamer to increase its subscriber base and strengthen revenue after a year of falling stock and well-publicized struggles with subscription numbers and financials.
A month later though, it's not looking like the ad-based subscription option did much at all to alleviate those issues. As reported by the Wall Street Journal, subscription analytics firm Antenna showed that the ad-supported plan was the least popular Netflix tier in its first month, making up only about nine percent of new signups.
By comparison, HBO Max's ad tier reportedly garnered 15 percent of new signups in its first month when it launched for $9.99 per month in June of 2021.
In a statement to the Wall Street Journal, a Netflix spokesperson claimed Antenna's figures were inaccurate and didn't show the full picture of how the ad-supported tier is actually performing. "It's still very early days for our ad-supported tier and we're pleased with its launch and engagement, as well as the eagerness of advertisers to partner with Netflix," the statement reads.
Netflix's ad tier, which costs $6.99 per month (relatively cheap for streaming) closely resembled the $9.99 basic plan, which is the streamer's cheapest non-ad option. However, it also has the worst video quality and has long been Netflix's least popular tier, which might explain why people aren't excited about joining it — low video quality and ads aren't exactly what people want from their streaming services.
A month later though, it's not looking like the ad-based subscription option did much at all to alleviate those issues. As reported by the Wall Street Journal, subscription analytics firm Antenna showed that the ad-supported plan was the least popular Netflix tier in its first month, making up only about nine percent of new signups.
By comparison, HBO Max's ad tier reportedly garnered 15 percent of new signups in its first month when it launched for $9.99 per month in June of 2021.
In a statement to the Wall Street Journal, a Netflix spokesperson claimed Antenna's figures were inaccurate and didn't show the full picture of how the ad-supported tier is actually performing. "It's still very early days for our ad-supported tier and we're pleased with its launch and engagement, as well as the eagerness of advertisers to partner with Netflix," the statement reads.
Netflix's ad tier, which costs $6.99 per month (relatively cheap for streaming) closely resembled the $9.99 basic plan, which is the streamer's cheapest non-ad option. However, it also has the worst video quality and has long been Netflix's least popular tier, which might explain why people aren't excited about joining it — low video quality and ads aren't exactly what people want from their streaming services.