Netflix claims price drop improved subscriber counts in India in 2022

American streaming platform Netflix says price cuts across plans in India have helped improve subscriber additions and audience engagement in 2022, as the service has attempted to supplement it with content that appeals to wider segments.  

Last December, Netflix slashed rates across plans in India by 18-60%, as the company widely seen as a premium service in the country aimed to reach more people. Netflix’s mobile-only plan, earlier priced at ₹199 per month, now costs ₹149. The basic plan that allows access to all content on any one device is priced at ₹199 versus ₹499 earlier. The standard plan that allows access across two devices now comes for ₹499 and the premium plan that works across four devices costs ₹649 compared with ₹799 earlier. While the service did not share India-specific subscriber numbers, media experts say at 6 million, the platform lags behind rivals like Amazon Prime Video (28 million) and Disney+ Hotstar (61 million).  

“We had intentionally and deliberately planned the price recalibration to coincide with a slate that appeals to broader audiences,” said Monika Shergill, vice-president, content, Netflix India told Mint. The Reed Hastings owned platform has launched 27 films and series in India in 2022 across 10 plus genres and five formats. Seven out of nine films released this year featured in the global Top 10 for non-English films and six out of seven returning seasons of Netflix series featured in the number one spot in TV shows in India. Alia Bhatt-starrer Darlings enjoyed the highest opening ever for any Netflix film in India and was watched in 28 countries with total viewing hours of over 32 million, while Monica, O My Darling, trended in the number one spot in seven countries including India in the first two weeks of its release. Mismatched (season two), Jamtara Sabka Number Ayega (season two), and Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein were the most trending Indian series this year. On average, every Netflix film and series from India released in 2022 trended in eight countries. The top watched genre in India in 2022 for Indian stories was thrillers, followed by action dramas and sports dramas. The top watched genres for global stories in India were action dramas and thrillers. As far as international content finding draw goes, shows such as Inventing Anna and Bridgerton (season two), Stranger Things (season four), DAHMER: Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story and Wednesday, all released this year, emerged as five of the platform’s biggest English-language series of all time. Besides these, Money Heist (Spanish), Squid Game (Korean), and All Of Us Are Dead (Korean) were the most trending global titles in India. Korean and Spanish were the most watched non-Indian languages on Netflix after English.  

To be sure, in line with the draw for tentpole foreign content, several entertainment industry experts feel the Netflix strategy remains urban and niche despite recent corrections. “The focus is still on getting the biggest mainstream Bollywood names on board. There isn’t much new on offer for the top tier of the audience segment that it has exhausted,” said a film producer referring the platform’s upcoming Archies adaptation, Anushka Sharma’s Chakda Xpress and Kareena Kapoor Khan’s untitled original.  

Other than original series, Netflix has seen licensed movies find traction too. The Hindi version of period drama RRR was viewed for over 73 million hours, Alia Bhatt-starrer Gangubai Kathiawadi for over 50 million hours, and horror comedy Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 for over 21 million hours around the world. At 15 weeks, RRR (Hindi) was the longest-ever trending Indian film on the global Top 10 for non-English films, Netflix said. “We’re looking at doubling down our south Indian licensed slate next year even as we programme more original shows, films and documentaries,” Shergill said.  

Calling India one of the fastest growing markets across all of the countries Netflix is present in, and the top performer in the APAC (Asia and Pacific) region, Shergill said while the service had seen a rough start to 2022 globally, India has seen tremendous growth over the year. “We realise there is no value that non-paying or discounted subscribers bring to the table so we’ve been measured and thoughtful in recognising that we make is ploughed back to the consumer, which is why we have to be priced a certain way,” Shergill said with regard to the fact that several rival platforms are still priced lower than Netflix. For instance, an Amazon Prime Video subscription costs ₹1,499 for a year and includes music and shopping benefits. Disney+ Hotstar offers four plans—super (₹899), premium (₹1,499), both annual subscriptions, and mobile options (₹299 per year or ₹49 per month).