WASHINGTON: Online entertainment giant Netflix on Thursday reported strong financial results for the past quarter, adding over five million new subscribers and surpassing Wall Street expectations, reported German news agency (dpa).
The company’s third-quarter revenue rose by 15 (per cent) year-on-year to just over US$9.8 billion, exceeding analysts’ forecasts. Profit also surged from US$1.68 billion a year earlier to US$2.36 billion.
Looking ahead, Netflix anticipates additional growth fuelled by the upcoming second season of the South Korean series ‘Squid Game’, among others. The company projects revenue to grow by nearly 15 per cent again in the current quarter.
A significant driver of Netflix’s subscriber growth has been its ad-supported plan, which attracted 35 per cent more users compared to three months ago. The platform now serves around 282.7 million customer households, with users spending an average of two hours per day on the service, Netflix said.
Netflix’s crackdown on password sharing, initiated last year, has also contributed to user growth, with many previous freeloaders opting for their own subscriptions rather than abandoning the platform.
The positive results pleased investors, leading to a 3 per cent rise in Netflix shares during after-hours trading on Wall Street. – BERNAMA-dpa
