Netflix drops estimates based on economy
updated 12:55 pm EDT, Mon October 6, 2008
Netflix lowers estimates
Subscriber numbers for Netflix are on a slight decline, the company has announced. The movie rental outfit says that in figures for the third quarter of the year, it recorded only 8.672 million subscribers, below predictions of 8.675 to 8.875 million. Final revenue figures, which will be announced on October 20th, are expected to end up between $343 and $348 million. CFO Barry McCarthy notes that while July subscriber growth was fine, it dropped significantly in August, only to resume growth in September.
The company foremost blames worldwide economic problems, which may have led to people canceling subscriptions or choosing not to join. Netflix is also faced with increasingly stiff competition, particularly from digital services such Amazon's Unbox and the Apple iTunes Store. The company has however announced expanded online streaming options, including Macs, Xbox 360s, and content from Starz.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Apr 2001
Interesting
This makes sense to me. I recently dropped NetFlix, simply because I am trying to cut monthly fixed expenses, and it was an easy cut to make. I suspect they are seeing other people make the same sort of decision.