Netflix’s first half of 2022 has been full of controversy, causing concern for their previously loyal customers. After their changes to the services, features, and prices, Netflix recently shared its outlook for the foreseeable future with its frightened shareholders. From January to May of 2022, Netflix’s share price dropped significantly. Starting at $597.37 per share on January 1st, Netflix’s price has dropped nearly 70%, now boasting a measly $186.35. 

One of the main reasons for this price drop is the recent alterations Netflix has made to its platform. 

On January 14th, 2022, Netflix announced a price increase, up to $20 a month, for their premium subscription. This made many customers second guess continuing their subscription due to the fact that other streaming platforms offer similar services with a far cheaper price tag to go along with it. For example, a Hulu subscription costs as low as $6.99 a month or $69.99 a year.

“I heard about the price increase. Personally, I’m going to continue to use Netflix because of its originals and shows. But, I definitely understand why people would choose to end their subscription,” said sophomore Arda A.

Although many subscribers share this mindset, others have chosen to end their subscriptions following this change.

On April 19, 2022, Netflix published a first-quarter shareholder letter in which they described the current state of the company and the probable outlook for the next quarter. They reported their first subscriber decrease in more than a decade. In quarter 1 they lost over 200,000 subscribers. Not only that, but they anticipate an even larger decrease in the next quarter. They expect close to a 2 million subscriber loss in the second quarter. 

Another reason for Netflix’s recent decline in subscribers is their initiative for cracking down on password sharing. Netflix lost money from this because a portion of the viewers weren’t paying. In their letter, they reported that over 100 million households worldwide have been sharing their password. They plan to fix this by making an extra fee for those sharing their password.

”I’ve been following Netflix’s stock price fall for the past few months, and one aspect people aren’t looking at enough is the dropoff due to the [covid] lockdown [ending]. Netflix’s stock price grew dramatically as a result of the pandemic because people were forced to stay home, but now, because lockdown is over, people are getting out more, and not watching as much Netflix,” said sophomore Jack D.

Although Netflix’s future is looking uncertain, there is some potentially good news for people looking for a cheaper Netflix plan. During an earnings call, Netflix Co-CEO Reed Hastings announced that a cheaper plan would be released in the future with ads. This means that viewers who don’t mind watching ads, will now have the option to have a Netflix account for cheaper than the current costly price. 🔳