There was a time when streamers wooed potential customers with the promise of an ad-free experience. In recent years, however, companies such as Netflix, Amazon, Disney and more have hiked up their prices and made an ad-supported tier the most affordable option. Now, Netflix is taking the next step towards becoming a de-facto ad tech company by moving its development in-house, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Netflix announced the shift during its upfront preview, in which the company also shared that its $7 per month ad-supported tier has 40 million monthly active users. The ad-supported plan is reportedly getting 40 percent of new signups, with it having 15 million users just six months ago, in November.

The streaming company has relied heavily on Microsoft to reach this success, partnering with the tech giant in 2022 on advertising and sales. But, the training wheels are coming off with Netflix’s choice to move things in house, a choice that “will allow us to power the ads plan with the same level of excellence that’s made Netflix the leader in streaming technology today,” Netflix ads chief Amy Reinhard said. Microsoft will also no longer be Netflix’s sole ad tech partner, as the streamer will start working with companies like Google’s Display & Video 360 and The Trade Desk later this summer.

  • SUPAVILLAIN
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    202 months ago

    See, every latest new bullshit that comes out of Netflix make me grateful I went back to sailing the seas after the very first time they hiked prices.

  • Abracadaniel [he/him]
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    52 months ago

    they finally kicked me off my friend’s account and I don’t even care becasue their library is consistently pretty mid, and their originals are consistently bad.

  • blobjim [he/him]
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    12 months ago

    the next step is to increase the price of the ad supported plan. And once new membership is like 80% on the ad-supported plan, they can drop the ad-free one. angry-place