The new one Basics With AdsSubscription costs $7 per month in the US, while a normal basic subscription costs $10. Germans pay cheaper Netflix subscriptions 5 euros per monthwhich is three euros cheaper than the regular basic option.

In addition to the US and Germany, Netflix will launch its new subscription on November 3 in ten other countries, including France, Spain, Italy and the UK. Nothing is yet known about the Dutch introduction. In our country, the basic subscription costs 8 euros per month, the same as in Germany.

Ads 4 to 5 minutes per hour

With the new subscription, customers are served ‘4 to 5 minutes’ of advertising per hour. Ads on Netflix are between 15 and 30 seconds long and play before and during series and movies.

Just like the regular basic subscription, users with the new option are only allowed to watch one stream at a time and they don’t get HD picture quality. With the new subscription, they will not be able to download movies and series to watch offline.

Smaller range of films and series

Cheap subscriptions have a smaller selection of films and series. The reason is, the company has to pay more to several film studios and producers to offer its films and series in this new model. Netflix said it is working to finalize more licensing deals so its supply will increase in the near future.

Competitor Disney+ will also launch a cheaper subscription with ads in the US in December. Disney has not reported anything about availability and pricing in the Netherlands.

Battle for customers

With cheaper subscriptions, Netflix and Disney hope to retain existing customers and attract new ones who find their streaming services too expensive. For years, Netflix said it didn’t support this model, but that stance changed after the streaming service lost hundreds of thousands of subscribers this year.

The company promises to ensure that viewers don’t see the same ads too often. Advertisers can tailor their ads to specific target groups based on the data Netflix has about its users.

Videoland

Some of Netflix and Disney’s competitors have long subscribed to ads at lower prices. Videoland RTL has also offered this in the Netherlands since 2020. In the US, Hulu and HBO Max also have similar options. It’s not yet known when HBO will also offer this in Europe. Apple is also said to be working on ads on Apple TV+.

Viaplay, which broadcasts Formula 1 and the Premier League in the Netherlands, said there were no plans for cheaper subscriptions.