Netflix wants to build its empire and even expand it to an area where the SVOD platform still has little presence. The catalog is being redesigned and needs to make room for other productions.
Netflix is constantly thinking about improving its profitability. It even made a radical change with the elimination of the Essential offer at $10.90. This tier will disappear in the coming weeks to make room for just three subscriptions: Standard with advertising (1080p, 2 screens) at $5.99, Standard without advertising (1080p, 2 screens) at $13.49 and Premium (4K, 4 screens, no ads). The monthly addition of films, series, documentaries or shows will continue in the coming years, but it will not just stay that way.
Netflix wants a piece of the pie of a large industry
Netflix is best known as a video streaming platform. By subscribing to the service, subscribers can watch hundreds and hundreds of different programs. Films and series not developed by the company with the red N, such as 100% in-house productions. This internal creation is also THE added value of any SVOD platform. But we also know that the company wants a piece of the video game industry pie. Netflix Games was developed with this ultimate goal in mind and currently offers mobile titles such as Stranger Things: Puzzle Tales and Stranger Things 3, as well as more classic software from PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo such as Death’s Door or GTA Trilogy.
Like the manufacturers in the video game industry, Netflix wants to both distribute external games and produce its own games. To this end, the company with the red N invested in building studios and poaching industry veterans. The company is currently developing a AAA action RPG with a solid team consisting of Jerry Edsall (Gears of War 4 & 5), Raf Grassetti (God of War), Chacko Sonny (Overwatch) and Joseph Staten (Halo). At the same time, a Squid Game game and even a Black Mirror app will be released on Netflix.
The goal is to release one video game per month starting in July 2024
“Gaming is a big market. Without China and Russia, it is almost 150 billion dollars, not including advertising revenue. […] Almost three years after the launch of our initiative [Netflix Jeux] and we are pleased with the progress we have made. In 2023, we have tripled our commitment. We have set ourselves even more ambitious growth targets for 2025 and 2026 » explains Gregory K. Peters, co-CEO of Netflix, during a meeting with investors. At the moment, this activity does not place a significant burden on the platform’s finances, but the goal is to make sure that changes.
After more than 100 games released, the company confirms that there are still more than 80 titles in development, a significant number that should allow the service to achieve another goal: to release one game per month starting in July 2024. « Starting in July, we will release approximately one new game per month in Netflix Stories » added the co-CEO. What are Netflix Stories? These are narrative games based on series or shows on the platform, such as Perfect Match. It’s a start, but there’s still a very (very) long way to go to reach the level of PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo and all the publishers.
Source : Minutes of a Netflix meeting.
