Netflix has announced its intention to stop reporting quarterly membership numbers and average revenue per membership starting in the first quarter of 2025, per CNBC.
The streaming giant's decision to stop reporting quarterly subscriber numbers marks a notable shift in focus away from the traditional battleground of attracting customers, which has been central to their competitiveness known as the "streaming wars."
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What Netflix Will Report In 2025 Instead
Instead, Netflix aims to redirect investor attention towards metrics that executives believe better represent customer satisfaction, such as revenue, earnings, and free cash flow, in a shareholder letter. By doing so, Netflix seeks to emphasize its financial performance as a key indicator of its success and stability in the industry.
While some investors may express concerns over reduced transparency, Netflix's decision signifies its evolution as a dominant force in the streaming industry, prioritizing financial performance as it matures as a company.
"But now we're generating very substantial profit and free cash flow (FCF). We are also developing new revenue streams like advertising and our extra member feature, so memberships are just one component of our growth."
Interestingly, this move coincides with Netflix's sustained growth and profitability, outpacing many legacy media companies and positioning itself as a leader in the evolving entertainment industry.
Besides, even after facing backlash for increasing subscription tiers, a recent report from VCPost shows that Netflix already exceeded projections with their subscriber numbers in quarter one of 2024 alone.
"In addition, as we've evolved our pricing and plans from a single to multiple tiers with different price points depending on the country, each incremental paid membership has a very different business impact."
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