Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorNetflix may dive into the ad-supported VOD space as soon as the fourth quarter of 2022 — sooner than it originally signaled.Last month, as Netflix reported an unexpected drop in streaming subscribers in Q1 and forecast a 2 million sub loss for the second quarter, the company announced plans to roll out a lower-cost version of its streaming service with ads.
Co-CEO Reed Hastings told investors at the time that Netflix would “figure out” the AVOD strategy “over the next year or two.”The company has evidently accelerated that timeline: Netflix informed employees of a Q4 target date for the ad-supported tier in a recent memo, the New York Times reported, citing two anonymous sources.
A Netflix rep declined to comment. No details have come to light about what Netflix’s AVOD tier would cost or how advertising would be presented.
In the U.S., Netflix’s standard two-stream HD plan is $15.49/month. The company will continue to offer ad-free packages to customers worldwide.Some of Netflix’s biggest competitors already offer cheaper, ad-supported plans, including Hulu, HBO Max, NBCUniversal’s Peacock and Paramount+.
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