Netflix Is Raising Prices Again, As It Discusses Vision For Video Games

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In simple terms, you can always expect a degree of unpredictability in life, but something consistent is the likelihood of Netflix increasing its prices. And indeed, they’ve made another announcement about this upcoming price hike. To break it down, each of their main plans will experience an increase of at least $1 per month.

The following are the fresh rates that take effect right away for newly signed-up subscribers. For current members, these rates will be updated during the next billing period.

  • Standard with ads — $8/month (up from $7/month)
  • Standard — $18/month (up from $15.50/month)
  • Premium — $25/month (up from $23/month)

For the Standard level, users have the option to include another person in their plan for either $7 per month with advertisements or $9 per month without. On the other hand, the Premium tier offers the opportunity to add up to two extra members at a cost of $7 per month including ads, or $9 per month without ads.

During a recent financial update, Netflix unveiled an upcoming price rise, highlighting that it had just added over 19 million new subscribers within the last quarter, bringing its global total to over 300 million members.

In a recent communication, the Netflix team expressed that as they consistently pour resources into enhancing our programming and providing greater worth to our subscribers, there may be instances where we request our members to contribute slightly more. This additional income will then be utilized to boost our offerings even further.

The price increases implemented this week cover the US, Canada, Portugal, and Argentina.

An update on Netflix Games

As a gamer, I’d say I’m proud to be part of a platform that offers an extensive collection of movies, TV shows, and yes, video games too! Reflecting on our gaming journey so far, I can confidently say we’ve made some promising initial strides. Titles like Oxenfree II and Grand Theft Auto have been real game-changers, drawing in tens of millions of gamers like me.

And let’s not forget about Squid Game: Unleashed, the exciting tie-in game for our hit series Squid Game. It perfectly encapsulates what we aim to deliver here at Netflix – engaging, immersive experiences that keep you hooked!

He explained, “This strategy is fueling a self-reinforcing loop between sequential stories and concurrent games. We’ve only begun to explore the full potential of this area, but it’s already clear that this method not only prolongs the audience’s involvement with the narrative world, but also generates a harmony that strengthens both types of content – interactive and non-interactive.

In essence, Peters stated that Netflix is still fine-tuning its approach towards video games. Future endeavors will center around creating “story-driven” games based on Netflix’s own franchises and introducing “social gaming experiences” for television, which will be streamed directly from the cloud. At present, most of Netflix’s gaming offerings are available on mobile devices, but they have been developing cloud streaming technology for quite some time now to deliver games straight to your TV or computer.

We envision this as an upgrade from traditional family game nights or a modernized version of classic TV game shows. We’re thrilled about bringing unique experiences into this realm. Our focus will be on developing games suitable for children. This platform is completely ad-free and does not require in-app purchases. It’s a safe environment exclusively available with your subscription. Additionally, we aim to include well-known, mainstream titles such as Grand Theft Auto (GTA), among others.

Reports indicate that only a small fraction of Netflix subscribers are downloading games on mobile, and Peters acknowledged that the impact of Netflix’s game business so far has been fairly minimal. However, he emphasized that Netflix’s spending on games is minimal compared to its total budget for content production.

He stated, “We plan on maintaining our discipline when it comes to expanding that investment, as we witness ongoing expansion and member advantages. To put it simply, there’s a lot more work ahead in this area, but we’re venturing into a fresh content category, which incidentally generates around $140 billion in consumer spending annually. In other words, we’re gradually demonstrating to our members that we are a platform for exploring and enjoying games, and we eagerly anticipate launching larger and more impressive games every year.

In the year 2024, Netflix shut down one of its elite studios for video game production, which was led by experienced industry professionals, including ex-Halo boss Joseph Staten. While they did close this specific studio, Netflix continues to operate their internal game development studio, Netflix Games Studio, and also owns fully-fledged external teams like Night School Studio, Boss Fight Entertainment, and Next Games.

This week, it became public knowledge that Leanne Loombe, previously in charge of Netflix’s game department, has moved to lead Annapurna’s gaming division. Loombe is stepping into Annapurna following a time of substantial transformation and adaptation in their video game sector.

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2025-01-22 17:39