BUSINESS NEWS | JULY 18, 2019 / 5:00 AM / 4 DAYS AGO

Netflix to roll out cheaper mobile-only plan for India

Munsif Vengattil, Arriana McLymore
(Reuters) - Netflix Inc (NFLX.O) said on Wednesday it would roll out a lower-priced mobile-only plan in
India within the next three months to tap into a price-sensitive market at a time the streaming company is
losing customers in its home turf.
India is among the last big growth markets for the company, where it faces competition from
Amazon.com Inc’s (AMZN.O) Prime Video and Hotstar, a video streaming platform owned by Walt Disney
Co’s (DIS.N) India unit.
Netflix lost U.S. streaming customers for the first time in eight years on Wednesday, when it posted
quarterly results. It also missed targets for new subscribers overseas.
“India is a mobile-first nation, where many first-time users are experiencing the internet on their phones.
In such a scenario, a mobile-only package makes sense to target new users,” said Tarun Pathak, analyst at
Counterpoint Research.
The creator of “Stranger Things” and “The Crown” said in March that it was testing a 250-rupee ($3.63)
monthly subscription for mobile devices in India, where data plans are among the cheapest in the world.
The country figures prominently in Chief Executive Officer Reed Hastings’ global expansion plans.
“We believe this plan, which will launch in the third quarter, will be an effective way to introduce a larger
number of people in India to Netflix and to further expand our business,” the company said in a letter to
investors released late on Wednesday.
Netflix currently offers three monthly plans in India, priced between 500 rupees ($7.27) and 800 rupees
$11.63).
It has created a niche following in the country by launching local original shows like the thriller “Sacred
Games” and dystopian tale “Leila”, which feature popular Bollywood actors.
The second season of “Sacred Games” is set to release in August.
In contrast, Hotstar, which also offers content from AT&T Inc’s (T.N) HBO and also streams live sports,
charges 299 rupees ($4.35) per month. Amazon bundles its video and music streaming services with its
Prime membership.
“We’ve been seeing nice steady increases in engagement with our Indian viewers that we think we can
keep building on. Growth in that country is a marathon, so we’re in it for the long haul,” Netflix Chief
Content Officer Ted Sarandos said.
Reporting by Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Munsif Vengattil, Vibhuti Sharma in Bengaluru and Arriana
Mclymore in New York; Editing by Anil D'Silva and Gopakumar Warrier
Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-netflix-india/netflix-to-roll-out-cheaper-mobile-only-plan-
for-india-idUSKCN1UC2R9