Netflix Surpassed 200 Million Subscribers During Q4 2020

Netflix is Hollywood’s first streaming service to have 200 million subscribers.

The company announced that it added 8.5 million subscribers in the last quarter of 2020 during its Q4 earnings report on Tuesday, surpassing its projected gains of 6 million new subscribers. The company reported $6.64 billion in revenue, which slightly exceeded Wall Street’s expectations.

Netflix, which raised the price of its standard and premium subscription plans in October 2020, made most of its Q4 subscriber gains outside the United States: The company stated that 83 percent of its 2020 subscriber gains hailed from outside North America. Netflix highlighted its international content slate in its earnings report, such as “Barbarians,” a historical action series from Germany that Netflix said was viewed by 37 million subscribers globally within the first four weeks of release. “Sweet Home​,” a Korean-language horror show, was viewed by 25 million subscribers, while the Japanese-language thriller series “Alice in Borderland,” which was adapted from the manga of the same name, was viewed by 18 million subscribers.

As for English-language shows, Netflix played up the success of the critically-acclaimed fourth season of “The Crown,” but did not offer viewership statistics. Netflix also highlighted 2020 titles such as “The Queen’s Gambit” and “Bridgerton”; Netflix stated that the former series was viewed by 62 million subscribers within four weeks of its premiere. As for “Bridgerton,” Netflix teased that it will share “exciting news” about the series later in the week. “Bridgerton,” which was executive produced by Shonda Rhimes, has been expected to receive a second season renewal following Season 1’s success with viewers and critics.

Netflix stated that it has over 500 titles that are in post-production or preparing to launch on its streaming service and also noted that its film and television productions are back up and running in most regions following the months-long production difficulties stemming from the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The company touted several films and television shows that will premiere on the streamer throughout Q1 2021, such as “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before 3​,” “​Fate: The Winx Saga​,” the Jennifer Garner-led “​Yes Day​, “​Sky Rojo​,” and ​”Space Sweepers​,” a Korean sci-fi action film. Netflix previously announced that it will premiere one original film every week throughout 2021.

News on upcoming installments in most of Netflix’s high-profile shows, including “The Witcher” and awards season-favorites like “Stranger Things” and “Ozark,” were absent from the company’s latest earnings report.

Netflix’s latest subscriber and revenue statistics close the company’s fiscal year on a positive note; the company narrowly missed its projection for new subscribers in Q3, when it added 2.2 million subscribers. Variety reported that Netflix gained 36.6 million streaming customers throughout fiscal year 2020, marking the company’s strongest year for subscriber gains yet.

Netflix shares were up 12.2 percent in after-hours trading at press time.

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