Netflix is the king of streaming with more than 200 million subscribers. However now it seems the platform has set its sights on dominating a brand new type of leisure: video games.
The corporate will provide video games on its service throughout the subsequent yr, in keeping with a report by Bloomberg. The outlet says video games will seem like a brand new style on the platform — just like documentaries and stand-up specials. Bloomberg did not get into specifics, however, reported Netflix (NFLX) would not plan on charging additional for entry to the video games.
Video video games might appear to be an odd match for Netflix, however, with opponents like Disney (DIS) shortly catching up, Netflix is seeking to see if it may do to video video games what it did to Hollywood. Video video games aren’t solely a multibillion-greenback enterprise, however providing video games might give Netflix its Subsequent Massive Factor — something critics say it needs right now.
Disney and Comcast’s NBCUniversal have several methods to earn money, equivalent to promoting Iron Man toys and Jurassic Park theme park rides, so the businesses’ income streams aren’t intrinsically tied to their new streaming ventures, Disney+ and Peacock. That is not the case for Netflix.
The corporate’s major income driver is tied to each subscriber it brings in. Thus far, the enterprise has been booming in that division with Netflix on the high of the streaming mountain. Nonetheless, it is progress is beginning to look a tad sluggish of late.
The streaming service reported in April it has 208 million subscribers globally, after including 4 million within the first quarter of 2021. That quantity missed expectations and the forecasts for its subsequent quarter, which the corporate reviews a subsequent week, have been additionally fairly lackluster.
The corporate has been seeking to diversify, and video video games could be a sensible method to try this.
The world of gaming is not fully alien to Netflix. The corporate announced a video game based mostly on its hit authentic collection “Stranger Issues” in 2019.
Netflix has employed Mike Verdu to be its vice-chairman of sport improvement and assist the corporate with its gaming efforts. Verdu has a stable pedigree in this world since he was the vice-chairman of content material at Fb Actuality Labs, overseeing that firm’s digital actuality choices. He was additionally the senior vice chairman of a cell for Digital Arts (EA) — some of the important names in gaming.
Netflix has confirmed time and time once more that it may discover success by providing its clients new types of leisure.
Nonetheless, purchasers are aware of video games. Different corporations have tried — and failed — to make streaming video games work. Google (GOOG), for instance, said in February that it is carried out making video games lower than two years after launching Stadia, its new sport platform. Amazon’s gaming technique with “Crucible,” its “Fortnite”-Esque free-to-play sport, additionally wasn’t successful, nor was its Luna streaming online game platform.
— CNN’s Rishi Iyengar contributed to this report.