LOS ANGELES: Netflix Inc. said on Tuesday it lost 970,000 subscribers from April through June, averting the worst-case scenario projected by the company, but offered a forecast below Wall Street expectations for the current quarter.
It plans to launch an ad-supported tier next year, and it warned that the strong dollar was also hitting revenue booked from subscribers abroad.
Netflix had warned in April that it expected to lose 2 million customers in the current quarter, shocking Wall Street and raising questions about its long-term growth prospects.
While defections for the second quarter were not as steep as expected, Netflix estimated its new customer additions for July through September would amount to 1 million. Wall Street analysts were expecting 1.84 million, according to analysts polled by Refinitiv.
After years of red-hot growth, Netflix’s fortunes have reversed as rivals including Walt Disney Co, Warner Bros Discovery and Apple Inc. invest heavily in their own streaming services.
In a letter to shareholders, the company said it had further examined the slowdown, which it had attributed to a variety of factors including password sharing, competition and a sluggish economy.
Netflix remains the dominant streaming service around the world with nearly 221 million global paid subscribers.
In April, the company said it was addressing customer defections in part by planning a crackdown on password-sharing and launching the less-expensive tier with advertising. Last week, Netflix announced Microsoft Corp. as its technology and sales partner for the ad-supported offering .
The company also is working to build on the popularity of the series “Stranger Things” and seeking to turn some of its biggest successes into franchises.
For April through June, earnings-per-share came in at $3.20.
Netflix said the strong US dollar hit revenue, which grew 9 percent. Revenue would have increased by 13 percent without the foreign exchange impact, the company said.
Netflix loses nearly 1 million subscribers, forecast misses Street estimates
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Netflix loses nearly 1 million subscribers, forecast misses Street estimates
- Netflix’s fortunes have reversed as rivals including Walt Disney Co, Warner Bros Discovery and Apple Inc. invest in their own streaming services.
Tunisian journalist Chatha BelHajj Mubarak freed after sentence cut
- The court cut her sentence from five years to two, making her eligible for immediate release, her brother told Reuters
TUNIS: A Tunisian appeal court on Wednesday ordered the release of journalist Chatha BelHajj Mubarak, jailed since 2023 in a conspiracy case, after reducing her prison sentence, her family said.
The court cut her sentence from five years to two, making her eligible for immediate release, her brother told Reuters.
She was convicted in the so-called “Instalingo” case, which involved politicians, media figures and other defendants accused of conspiracy and financial crimes. BelHajj Mubarak denied the charges.
“Chatha is free and leaving prison,” her brother, Amen BelHajj Mubarak, said.
He said her health had severely deteriorated during her time in prison. She suffered serious complications, including significant hearing loss, and was diagnosed with cancer in detention, he added.
Tunisian authorities have said the case stems from judicial investigations into alleged financial and security-related offenses, and have rejected accusations by opposition groups that the prosecutions were politically motivated.
Tunisian prosecutors are pursuing a number of high-profile conspiracy cases involving politicians, journalists and activists. Several opposition leaders have received lengthy prison terms.
