Netflix has signed up more than 13 million more subscribers in the wake of its password-sharing crackdown.
The growth in the three months to the end of December – the most for any quarter since 2020 – is likely to spark fresh price rises.
Last year, the streaming giant stopped allowing users to share passwords with people not living in the same household.
Netflix co-CEO, Greg Peters, said: “We largely put price increases on hold as we rolled out paid sharing. Now that we’re through that, we’re able to resume our standard approach.” Many new members opted for the firm’s cheapest £4.99-a-month standard plan with adverts – it costs £10.99 without them.
Netflix said the cheap plan accounted for 40% of new sign-ups in its 12 ad-offering nations, including the UK and US.
Meanwhile, it is eyeing more live events to bring in new audiences.
On Tuesday, it announced a 10-year £3.9billion deal for pro-wrestling’s most popular weekly show, WWE Raw. Netflix said it had offered a strong slate of programmes, including the Beckham documentary series and Adam Sandler’s Leo.
The platform received 18 Oscar nominations this week, including a Best Picture nod for Maestro.
The rising tide of customers means Netflix had more than 260 million global subscribers at the end of 2023 – an annual increase of nearly 30 million. It reported $33.7billion-plus in revenue, up more than 6% on 2022, with profits at $5.4billion, against $4.49billion the year before.
