Netflix accelerating ad-supported launch to beat Disney, according to reports

Netflix is accelerating plans to launch an ad-supported offering in November in a move that would see it launch before the roll-out of Disney+’s advertising tier, according to reports.

The company, which recently poached two execs from Snapchat to head up its ad sales business, is said by Variety to be keen on beating Disney to the punch, with an ad-supported Disney+ to launch in the US in December.

The report notes that while Netflix had told investors in July that it was targeting a launch in “the early part of 2023” in the US, the company’s plans are now much more ambitious.

Netflix now, it says, plans on launching its ad-supported offering on 1 November in countries including the US, Canada, UK, France and Germany.

Pricing is not yet known, but it has previously been reported that the company has internally decided on a monthly cost of $7-9 per month.

Netflix has also reportedly set prices for ad buyers at $65 per thousand views, significantly higher than industry CPMs of below $20. The company is said to be asking for a $10m minimum commitment in annual ad spending from agencies, and predicts it will have around 500,000 ad-supported customers by the end of the year.

Initially, Netflix will not serve ads based on geography, age, gender, viewing behaviour or time of day. Advertisers will be able to buy against Netflix’s top 10 most-viewed shows and movies and against some content genres.

A spokesperson for Netflix told the outlet: “We are still in the early days of deciding how to launch a lower priced, ad-supported option and no decisions have been made. So this is all just speculation at this point.”