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Netflix added a record 19 million subscribers in the fourth quarter as viewers flocked to stream new episodes of Squid game and live sporting events including a live boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul.
The increase meant Netflix it had 301mn subscribers by the end of 2024, up 15 percent from last year and exceeding the 293mn expected by Wall Street. Its shares rose more than 13 percent in after-hours trading.
Netflix said it will raise prices in the US, Canada, Portugal and Argentina. The most popular US plan will increase by $2.50 per month to $17.99, while its cheapest ad-supported plan in the United States will increase by $1 to $7.99 per month.
“(Netflix) is already flexing its muscles by changing prices because of its very strong and diverse slate compared to its competitors,” said Paolo Pescatore, an analyst at PP Foresight.
The streaming Pioneer moved into live sports events in the fourth quarter, and the boxing match between Tyson and Paul attracted 65mn streams worldwide. On Christmas Day it aired two National Football League games, one of which featured Beyoncé as a halftime player, which reached 24 million viewers. Netflix also launched the second period of Squid gamewhich had achieved a peak of 68mn views in its first week.
“We enter 2025 with great energy, exiting the year with record (subscriber) additions and growing rapidly again,” the company wrote in a letter to shareholders.
It added that while the business remains “fiercely competitive”, it does not have the “obstacles” to manage the decline in television networks that its traditional Hollywood studio rivals are dealing with.
Revenue was $10.2bn in the fourth quarter, and the company raised its revenue guidance for this year by $500mn, about 14 percent from 2024. Earnings in the quarter more than doubled from $4.27 from $2.11 last year, plus operating income. exceeded $2bn, up 52 per cent.
This is the last time Netflix will report quarterly subscriber numbers, which have been closely watched by investors for years. But it said it would continue to release figures “as we cross-reference important data”.
Its subscriber base has grown since it launched password-sharing operations in May 2023, pushing shares up more than 80 percent in 2024. But the stock had a rough start in 2025.
Wall Street has been pushing for growth in stocks to slow as initial activity slows. But Netflix is making a big bet on live events to attract new subscribers, and this month it introduced its weekly broadcasts of WWE Raw – part of a 10-year deal with the entertainment wrestling team.
Executives said that live events will help deliver the audience that marketers crave. The advertising business has had a strange start since its launch in the fall of 2022, due to weakness in this sector.
“The most important thing in 2025 is to improve our offer for advertisers so that we can grow our advertising revenue,” it said in a letter to shareholders.
