Netflix Q1 Net Subscriber Adds Soared 125% Above Plan as Global Pandemic Hit
Q1 Netflix subscriber net adds as COVID-19 hit soared to 15.77 million globally, 125% higher than its Jan. 21 forecast and a 64% increase from Q1 2019, said the streaming service Tuesday. “We are fortunate to have a service that…
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is even more meaningful to people confined at home, and which we can operate remotely with minimal disruption in the short to medium term,” said a quarterly shareholder letter. “We’re seeing temporarily higher viewing and increased membership growth,” but Netflix expects viewing to decline and membership increases to slow down as “home confinement ends, which we hope is soon,” it said. It’s forecasting Q2 net subscriber adds to decline 52% sequentially but increase 178% from Q2 last year. “This pandemic has demonstrated the importance of a strong internet like never before,” said the letter. Networks in some countries “have struggled to cope” with the higher demand, it said. The engineering team in March was able to reduce network use by 25% “virtually overnight in those countries, while also substantially maintaining the quality of our service, including in higher definition,” it said. “We’re now working with ISPs to help increase capacity so that we can lift these limitations as conditions improve.” Most operations have "gone smoothly" during the pandemic, except for "significant disruption" in customer support, and content production has come to a global standstill, it said: "This has been devastating for millions of workers in the TV and film industry."