Netflix customers may download thousands of mobile games for free for two years. Netflix has created over 75 mobile games, including Grand Theft Auto, Love Is Blind, Monument Valley, and Oxenfree.
A new report claims Netflix may be investigating gaming income streams.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the business has been discussing in-app purchases, pricing premium titles, and inserting ads on games that its ad-tier members may access for months. These strategies work in mobile gaming, where customers will spend $111.4 billion in 2024.
A conversation doesn’t necessarily lead to action; therefore, the corporation may stop monetizing games. Netflix seemed to reject commercials and in-game fees during an April 2023 earnings conference.
Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters told investors, “We want to have a differentiated gaming experience, and part of that is giving game creators the ability to think about building games purely from the perspective of player enjoyment and not having to worry about other forms of monetization, whether it be ads or in-game
Plan changes occur. Netflix originally opposed an ad-supported tier and password sharing restrictions, but after losing thousands of customers in 2022, its first subscriber drop in almost a decade, it changed its mind.
The streamer’s growth halted in 2023, resulting in 3% layoffs, so monetizing games makes sense. Netflix also raised its premium plan to $22.99 per month for new U.S. consumers.
In 2022, Netflix sought a game director for an AAA PC game, which may be costly. The CMA estimated that AAA games may cost $200 million or more to produce. WSJ said that Netflix has explored charging for future high-budget games and that analysts estimate Netflix has spent $1 billion on gaming studio acquisitions and total gaming investment.
