With the confirmation of this plan, would this be the push Netflix needs to rise to the top?
Are you tired of playing the same games over and over again? Are you frustrated by the ads interrupting your gameplay? Do not worry. Netflix will have you covered—soon.
Netflix officially confirmed that it is expanding into video games on Jul. 20, starting from the classic mobile and eventually going to be available on pc, consoles, etc.; the company has multiple plans in store, which has all the investors and consumers fire up and looking to add their games to the Netflix platform.
Starting up as a small subscription-based DVD service, Netflix has become one of the most popular platforms for entertainment in recent years. With that said, why would the popular streaming program in question make this sudden move?
The reason is simple.
By adding video games to the platform, not only does Netflix separate itself from all the other streaming platforms, but it also will attract gamers to their platform.
Over the years, many other streaming platforms like Hulu, Apple, etc., have begun to emerge and attract users with their lower prices. According to USA TODAY, the demand for streaming has grown globally due to the pandemic by 44 percent, with records of 500 million unique viewers and 180 billion annual streams on more than 3.3 billion applications. Many of the new services offer identical features to Netflix, which, for that reason, has caused their worst slowdown in subscriber growth in recent years. It is undeniable that people are reluctant to buy the service due to common disinterest or unfamiliarity, even with hundreds of Netflix benefits. As a result, it seems relatively reasonable for Netflix to expand their service variety in response to the drastically increasing competition.
In recent years, video games have become one of the biggest genres online. Adding video games to this platform will also justify the cost for all the people who are reluctant to buy the service. To achieve this, Netflix has hired former Electronics Arts Inc. and Facebook executive Mike Verdu to lead the effort to add video games to the Netflix platform. In addition to this, Netflix opening itself to the world of video games would also allow it to develop games off of popular shows like House of Cards potentially.
Netflix is not the first to have thought and experimented with the idea of having high-quality, ad-free games in their services. Other big companies have started to assess the market’s interest to attract more people to their platform. One such example is Apple. Recently, they have added a game subscription service called Apple Arcade on Sept. 19. Within the program, Apple offers over 180 premium games that omit ads and in-game purchases. However, while the platform provides high-quality gameplay that is console-worthy, it was a big disappointment from individuals not as adept in the gaming scene. Mainly, the absence of in-game purchases frustrates these players when they want to spend a little money to get something that will make their gaming experience more exciting and fun.
This pattern could repeat for Netflix as its casual video-viewing audience might not be interested in the gaming features. Eventually, this could lead to confusing more potential consumers. A feasible solution would be to create another brand that markets Netflix-specialized video games to avoid confusing its streaming video service with its video games.
Of course, several factors could lead to this service’s ruin. For starters, it will take some of the core of what Netflix is known for: shows and movies. There is also the concern that eventually, after release, Netflix will raise the base subscription price higher to compensate for the extra category added to their platform, pushing many users who are already hesitant about the cost away.
On the other side of the spectrum, if Netflix is prepared to make this move, we should be expecting to see some big names in the game development industry investing in this new service. At the moment, it might be hard to tell if Netflix will rise to the top after the release of its “game” plan. But one thing is for sure: if the project succeeds, this will have a global impact on the entirety of the streaming community.
