Currently, Netflix offers subscriptions at three price levels, and doesn’t plan to lower that of its cheapest tier. Instead, executives are formulating an alternate version of the service, or a fourth tier, that will have different features and cost less, the Bloomberg report said.
The media services firm broke several records and gained massive traction in the US by offering a range of TV shows and movies for a fraction of the cost of pay-TV. This also forced millions of people to cancel their cable and satellite subscriptions. Now, the world’s largest streaming service is looking for growth in countries where per-capita income is significantly lower.
In India, Netflix offers subscriptions at Rs 500 a month ($6.85), Rs 650 and Rs 800. Star India’s Hotstar Premium streaming service, by comparison, sells for 199 rupees a month. Hastings also said that he isn’t too worried about local competitors, nor is he trying to be as ubiquitous as YouTube. In India, the company is targeting 100 million or so people who speak some English, and earn enough money to afford a video service like Netflix.
(With agency inputs)