Netflix Inc. culminated last year with more than 200 million registrants, a milestone driven by consumers left at home by the pandemic, entertainment enthusiasts, and growing demand in international markets where the streaming giant is ahead of many competitors.
The company said it is now able to generate more money than it needs, and has no plans to borrow more money to drive its growth strategy. Netflix shares rose 12% in after-hours trading.
Netflix’s continued growth comes amid higher competition from new streaming services including Disney + Walt Disney Co., Apple TV + at Apple Inc., HBO Max at AT&T Inc. and Peacock at Comcast Corp., not all of which were just over a year ago.
The company was boosted by the coronavirus pandemic, which forced consumers to cut back on a number of recreational activities – from eating out and on holidays to theaters and concert venues – as was the case. locked economies. With many people spending more time at home, demand jumped.
While most TV networks are still without most of their original content due to product closure due to Covid-19, Netflix’s well-stocked content arsenal has taken it to new heights. Netflix signed up to what it said were 37 million subscribers in 2020 and had a total of 203.7 million users at the end of the year – more than double what it was just three years earlier .