Streaming video service Netflix Inc. surpassed the number of original programming that HBO produced in the same year, but that still hasn’t prevented its subscriber growth falling short of Wall Street’s expectations.
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For $8.99 a month, customers can get access to Amazon Prime Video’s library of movies and TV shows, which undercuts Netflix’s middle-tier “standard” monthly subscription price for new customers by a dollar.
Looking at the 5 minute chart above you can see that shares cratered in the post market session to lows of $92.38, almost 15%, after closing the day at $108.40. Downloading would be especially helpful before hopping on a flight, because while internet services are available on many domestic airlines these days, the speeds are usually not fast enough to stream Netflix.
In August, the company introduced a new program called Amazon Households, which limited the way Amazon Prime members can share benefits.
These projections threaten Netflix’s narrative of worldwide domination that has helped fuel its stock’s remarkable 300 percent rise in the last three years.
But Netflix could also be seeing slower subscriber growth because it’s about to raise monthly fees from .99 to .99 if viewers want to watch content in high-definition, CBC News reported.
“It’s natural that everybody’s coming in as they realize that the future is Internet TV”, Hastings said.
“We’ve done no M&A”, Hastings said.
David Wells, chief financial officer at Netflix, indicated that it may be tough to gauge the level success in the company’s global ventures because it is expanding at a brisk pace overseas. In total, Netflix now has over 81.5 million subscribers across the globe. Investors, though, are far more focused the company’s subscriber growth.
“Amazon’s cheeky decision to announce its own monthly subscription streaming service just before Netflix posted its results reinforced the view that this is a highly competitive market where friends may be needed”, he said. Netflix had forecast revenue of $1.966 billion, up 25% from the same period a year ago. “I don’t think you are going to see a lot of people bailing out and running for the exits”, said Rosenblatt Securities analyst Martin Pyykkonen – largely because Netflix now has so many shows you can’t find anywhere else.
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Netflix may never take the plunge, and even if it does, there’s no guarantee that the streamer would roll out offline viewing across all markets; the US itself could forever remain a Netflix download desert.
