A senior Netflix Inc official said on Tuesday that the company has no current plans to offer a streaming option that includes advertising but declined to cancel it in the future.
When asked by CFO Spencer Newman whether the company would change its long-standing position that its service should remain ad-free, “never say never,” adding that “it’s not something in our plans right now.” “
Some Wall Street analysts have urged Netflix, the world’s largest streaming service, to develop a low-cost tier with advertising to increase revenue. The company’s new subscribers have slowed in recent quarters, and Netflix shares are down about 43% this year.
The Walt Disney Co. announced Friday that it will offer an ad-supported streaming option for Disney+, trying to attract AT&T’s WarnerMedia, Comcast Corp. and other customers who prefer to avoid paying a monthly fee. Willing to watch ads to avoid.
As for Netflix, “it’s not that we have religion against advertising,” Newman said at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom conference.
But he said the company is focusing on building out its existing business for customers who want to watch movies and TV shows without commercials. “We think we have a great model, a subscription business that scales really well globally,” Newman said.
“It’s hard for us to ignore what others are doing, but for now it doesn’t mean anything to us,” he said.
Newman also said that Netflix saw this year as a “year of learning” for its venture into mobile games. The company has so far offered 14 games to the subscribers.
“It’s something that I hope will be a big part of our business in a decade or so,” he said. “It’s not going to be a big part of our business in the next 12 months.”
This story has been published without modification in text from a wire agency feed. Only the title has been changed.
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