At its Upfront advertising presentation, Netflix disclosed that its ad-supported streaming tier now boasts 40 million monthly active users worldwide, marking a significant surge from the previous year’s 5 million. With a total of 270 million subscribers globally, the majority still opt for ad-free plans.
Netflix, after years of resistance, introduced its Standard with ads plan in 2022 to bolster revenue, offering a cheaper alternative. Priced at $6.99 monthly in the U.S., this plan provides HD streaming on two devices with limited content availability. Despite the absence of features like offline viewing and spatial audio, over 40% of signups in eligible regions opt for the ad-supported option.
Moreover, 70% of these members engage with Netflix content for over 10 hours monthly, and Netflix claims they are twice as likely to respond to ads compared to other streaming services’ subscribers. Netflix has also entered the ad tech space, announcing plans for an in-house ad platform in 2025, alongside measures to curtail password sharing, which contributed to revenue growth and subscriber retention.
