Netflix's subscriber bleed appears to have accelerated over the spring. After losing 200,000 subscribers between January and March, its Q2 earnings reveal that it dropped again between April and June – this time by a whopping one million subs.
The streaming company reported 220.67 million subscribers at the end of June, down from 221.64 million the previous quarter, which was itself down from 221.84 million at the end of last year. Its loss of one million subscribers is actually better than what was projected; CFO Spence Newman had previously speculated they'd lose two million. Netflix revenue was up 9% year-over-year.
Last quarter, Netflix blamed its slowed subscriber gain on the global economy, the war in Ukraine, and account sharing, the latter of which the company has been promising an aggressive crackdown on for some time and appears to be on the cusp of implementing.
But this quarter, Netflix's shareholder letter was less self-reflective. While the letter acknowledged the company "had more time to understand these issues, as well as how best to address them," the following paragraphs largely focus on praising Netflix's content slate and existing plans. It also reiterated its upcoming plan for a lower-priced ad tier in partnership with Microsoft, which now appears to be dropping in early 2023. A full rollout of its paid account sharing offering is also expected that year.
For now, Netflix is projecting a one million subscriber bounce back in the coming quarter, largely thanks to Stranger Things season 4. However, it expects revenue growth to continue to stall year-over-year, and is expecting only 5% growth in Q3.
Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.