While some information has emerged regarding Netflix and its forthcoming ad-supported tier, there are still no definitive details about the offering, with it still unclear whether current or potential subscribers will be interested.
The latest report from Bloomberg (paywall), however, may offer some insight, with sources close to the project sharing that the ad-supported tier could cost in the region of $7 to $9 for the plan.
Using the current Rand-Dollar exchange rate, this would place the tier in the region of R118 to R151. Given that the basic plan costs R99 locally, it is unclear what the precise pricing in South Africa would be.
That said, using pricing in the US as a benchmark, a basic plan starts at $9.99 a month. As such, the ad-supported tier would need to be close to the $7 if it were to indeed attract new subscribers to the platform.
There is also the consideration that Netflix has reached its threshold in terms of attracting new subscribers, especially with other services like Disney+ and HBO Max also gaining momentum over the past year.
The latest financial quarter saw the company register its first loss of subscribers in quite some time, as many people’s streaming and watching habits have changed since the beginning of the pandemic.
With a rumours growing about a potential lack of content, not to mention offline viewing not being available on the ad-supported tier, Netflix will need to make the price particularly affordable if it plans to get more subscribers onboard.
Looking at a few more details shared in the report, it is believed that Netflix will feature four minutes of ads for every one hour of content watched on the platform. Added to this will be ads displaying at the beginning of, as well as in the middle of series and movies.
How this will impact the viewing experience, especially given that there is no mention of being able to skip an ad, as you do on YouTube, means this tier could prove less than ideal for some.
Either way, Netflix will need to ensure that it gets this latest offering down pat. When that will be though, has not been shared, but it is said that the company will launch it in selected regions later this year.
