More old Netflix subscribers are canceling their subscriptions, according to a report by The Information. The survey data revealed that subscribers who have been with the service for more than three years represented 13% of cancellations in the first quarter of 2022.
The report obtained the data from Antenna, an analytics company that collects data from 5 million Americans who share broadcast subscriptions anonymously.
The data showed that cancellations totaled 3.6 million people in the fourth quarter, up from 2.5 million cancellations in the past five quarters.
The data indicates that new users account for a small share of opt-outs. This is another indication that Netflix is struggling to retain users for longer periods of time.
In the second quarter of 2021, people surveyed who had been on the platform for less than a year made up 70% of cancellations. While the old subscribers made up 6%. According to the data, 60% of cancellations were made by new subscribers in the last quarter.
Subscriber interest has waned due to the platform's selection of shows and movies, some of which can be found among other subscription services like Hulu and Peacock.
Plus, after all the price increases over the years, Netflix's subscription price has gotten expensive, way off when compared to cheaper ad-supported subscription plans from other services like Hulu, which costs $6.99 per month.
In the first quarter of 2022, the broadcasting giant reported a loss of 200,000 subscribers, the first time it had lost subscribers in more than 10 years.
Furthermore, Netflix expects to lose another 2 million subscribers in the second quarter of 2022. It currently has 74.58 million subscribers in the United States and Canada.
Netflix Cancellations Rise Among Old Subscribers
There are a number of factors that contribute to the fluctuation in the number of Netflix subscribers. In March, the service suspended its services in Russia due to its war on Ukraine. This resulted in her losing about one million subscribers in the country.
It also later raised the price across all of its subscription tiers. As a result, its basic plan came to $9.99 a month (from $8.99).
While its standard plan went up to $15.49 a month (from $13.99). While its premium plan went up to $19.99 a month (from $17.99).
We'll likely see a number of changes from Netflix over the next year or so. The platform was said to have informed employees that it plans to launch a cheaper, ad-supported plan sometime this year.
And the company's co-CEO, Reed Hastings, wasn't shy about cracking down on password sharing, too.
The service is currently testing a feature that allows subscribers to add sub-accounts to anyone using the service outside their homes for a lower price.
It has also developed live streaming of comedy specials and other unrecorded content. It is trying to keep pace with competitors like Disney Plus, which added 8 million new subscribers in the last quarter, has a live broadcast feature, and is developing an ad-supported subscription.