Netflix To Launch Cheaper Plan In India Amid Weak Memberships In US

(RTTNews) - Streaming giant Netflix confirmed that it will launch a mobile-only streaming plan starting in India, which will be less expensive than its current plans. With the move, the company aims to attract a larger crowd in one of its major market.

The news comes at a time when the Unites States recorded declining subscribers for the video streaming service in its second quarter, attributed partly to price increases.

The new plan in India is expected to launch in the third quarter.

Netflix earlier had tested a mobile-first plan in few countries. Using the plan, one could watch as much Netflix content of interest, but either on smartphone or tablet at a time.

"The plan will be an effective way to introduce a larger number of people in India to Netflix and to further expand our business in a market where Pay TV ARPU is low (below $5)."

However, in India, Netflix already faces stiff competition from other popular video streaming services such as Hotstar, Amazon Prime Video, Zee5, and ALT Balaji.

In its recently concluded second quarter, Netflix's paid memberships grew by 2.7 million, less than the 5.5 million recorded in the prior year. In the U.S., paid net membership losses were 126 thousand, compared to additions of 872 thousand a year ago.

In the third quarter, the company expects to grow paid memberships by 7 million, more than the 6.1 million in the same quarter a year ago.