Netflix is pushing customers toward signing up for the base, ad-free tier, despite hinting that it will never do so.
He was also spotted by the streaming industry insider Andrew Friedman (Opens in a new tab) (And first reported by Cord Busters (Opens in a new tab)), Netflix is trying to encourage potential subscribers to sign up for the ad-supported base tier, rather than the traditional base tier.
Previously, customers who went to the Netflix subscription page (Opens in a new tab) Four levels are welcomed to choose from: basic with ads, basic, standard, and premium. The latter three are not ad-supported, meaning viewers won’t have to sit through five minutes of ads for every hour of Netflix content they stream.
Now, however, those looking to buy a subscription are only given three tiers to choose from, with the monthly price of $9.99 / £6.99 / INR 199 / AU$10.99 the base tier being nowhere to be seen.
Or so it seems. Netflix base layer he It’s still available for purchase – you just need to do a little digging to find it.
Specifically, you’ll need to scroll down until you see some small letters that say “Want more options? See all plans.” Click the associated text and you’ll be taken to a near-identical sign-up page, which includes the ad-free base tier. This tier is more expensive. A bit of an ad-supported option, but you won’t have to sit through commercials, plus you have the option to download the best Netflix shows, best Netflix movies, and best Netflix documentaries on your device of choice.This level allows you to watch Netflix content offline as well.
So what’s the big deal? Netflix’s base levels only offer 720p resolution, so most viewers will opt for the standard or premium levels, which give you better video quality, higher resolution, and other bonuses, right?
not nessacary. The current cost of living crisis means that consumers have to make big decisions about how they spend their money. This includes streaming subscriptions — whether that be TV and movie platforms, or music streaming software like Spotify — that are likely to be kept or cancelled.
With people having to stretch their cash — or, in some cases, struggle to pay their bills — a cheap, albeit ad-supported subscription to the world’s best streaming service will certainly appeal to some. Netflix, then, might think it’s doing consumers a favor by putting the cheaper subscription tier front and center. As mentioned, the company’s base non-ad tier costs more than its ad-free cousin, so why isn’t Netflix pushing that tier during a period of economic uncertainty?
However, the problem is how Netflix promotes its ad-free base tier. By actively hiding the non-advertising base layer, Netflix is reducing consumer choices on its subscription page. This can be seen as poor customer service, as it denies potential subscribers a view of every option available to them.
It’s a move that also runs counter to what the Netflix executive team has told its shareholders. During Netflix’s Q3 2022 earnings call, Greg Peters, Netflix’s chief operating officer and chief product officer, claimed that the streaming giant would take a “pro-consumer approach” (according to financial advisors The Motley Fool). (Opens in a new tab)) to provide consumers with subscription options.
“As we’ve mentioned before, we’re not really trying to steer our members to one plan or the other,” Peters said. “We’re trying to take a pro-consumer approach and kind of let them find the right plan for them and land on it … And so we really expect this to be a pro-consumer model that’s going to be more attractive, bring in more members because the consumer pricing price is lower.”
So HedgeyeComm is clearly one of the most brilliant minds out there, and has figured out probably the friendliest thing I’ve ever seen is “not dealing with customers”. .twitter.com/edqD7ky51cJanuary 13, 2023
Peters made the comments after Netflix reported a net increase of 2.4 million subscribers in the third quarter of 2022, which came after consecutive fiscal quarters in which the company lost millions of customers and subsequently canceled several shows in development. At the time, it seemed like Netflix was buoyed by the subscriber-based shift and wanted to maintain that positivity by telling investors what they wanted to hear.
And yet here we are, four months after that earnings call, with Netflix burying one of its subscription tiers in the tiny version of its sign up page. So what has changed? The popularity (or rather unpopularity) of Netflix’s ad-based core layer.
As we reported on January 9, analysis by research firm Antenna indicated that uptake of the ad-supported Netflix tier has been slow — incredibly, in fact, with only 9% of new subscribers in the US signing up for this particular plan in the four months. Since then released.
Despite a slow start, Netflix’s head of global advertising, Jeremy Gorman, noted that the company is “delighted with the growth we’re seeing” (according to TechCrunch). (Opens in a new tab)) and that they expected more footfall in the coming months with the rollout of ad-supported tier in other regions of the world.
Reading between the lines, it appears that Netflix is not as happy as it claims to be. Evidence suggests that it drives potential subscribers to purchase the base ad-based tier instead of the non-ad tier, which directly contradicts the company’s previous comments about being consumer-friendly. It’s not a good look, Netflix, and you know it.
We’ve reached out to Netflix for an official comment on why they’re hiding the ad-free base tier on their signup page. We will update this article if we receive a response.