Stranger Things Helps Netflix Exorcise Subscriber Demons

Netflix’s subscriber growth in the second quarter of 2019 fell way short of expectations as the streaming service’s domestic subscriber base shrank for the first time since 2011. The company's latest earnings report shows that things improved in the third quarter due to growth in international paid memberships.

Netflix pointed to retro sci-fi horror hit Stranger Things as one of the reasons for the return to growth with 64 million member households watching the third season in its first four weeks on the platform.That helped boost its subscriber growth with 520,000 new paid subscribers added in the U.S. in Q3 while paid memberships increased by 6.26 million.

Ahead of major competitors Disney+, HBO Max and Apple+ all entering the streaming market, Netflix boasts 158.3 million paid subscribers, of which 97.7 million are international. The company is remaining upbeat about the upcoming competition, expecting the new services to accelerate the shift away from linear TV which should result in major new opportunities for streaming platforms.