With every streaming service (and Paramount+ is the latest to announce this) pushing recent price hikes into effect, it’s nice to know where a buck or three can be saved by choosing a plan with ads. Netflix has been dipping its toes into that realm, although its ad-supported tiers have notably had some missing selections that have downgraded the experience for some viewers. However, Netflix also wishes to increase the number of users willing to sit through commercial breaks, so it might perk some ears up to learn that Netflix is considering rolling out a free ad-supported plan in certain nations.
Unfortunately, the United States is not on that list, and according to anonymous sources who spoke to Bloomberg, Netflix “has no plans to offer a free service in the US, where it already reaches a majority of its potential customer base.” The outlet does report, however, that some European and Asian TV lovers could get lucky in that way:
Netflix has discussed creating free versions of its streaming service in some markets, namely in Europe and Asia, as the company looks for more ways to increase its audience, according to people familiar with its plans.
Bloomberg acknowledges that Kenya-based viewers could previously opt for such a plan that no longer exists, and the outlet (which hypothesizes that “Germany or Japan” could be testing grounds) further adds that “[t]here are no current plans to do this anywhere – these are just talks,” so it remains to be seen whether the idea goes anywhere.
(Via Bloomberg)
