The world’s leading entertainment service is starting to expand into the gaming community and it might start sooner than you think. Netflix offers TV shows, documentaries, and movies in a variety of genres and languages in over 190 countries and currently has over 209 million paid memberships across the world. However, they are trying to stretch their boundaries for quite a while now. Recently, they informed their investors that they are in the early stages of further expanding into games as an extension of the handful of experiments the company has done since 2012. This was a surprising yet obvious action.
As reported by Bloomberg, Netflix has hired Mike Verdu, a former Facebook vice president, and Electronic Arts executive as vice president of the game development section. They also came forward to speak about their plan in general. Netflix’s operating and chief product officer, Greg Peters, stated in a conference that the success of this project is dependent on outstanding games and that they believe games can provide more entertainment to the audience. They are also hoping that this initiative will help them link some of the games to their own franchises in some way. So, we can surely expect a Stranger Things game soon. Apart from that, the main goal is surely to keep their huge audience engaged and gain some more subscribers along the way.
Why is Netflix branching out into the world of games?
As stated earlier, this action was quite obvious. The only true competitor for Netflix users’ time and money is video games. In 2019, CEO Reed Hastings remarked that they compete more with Fortnite than HBO.
According to The Information, the corporation is considering selling members a package of games similar to those offered by Apple’s Apple Arcade service. With the recent hire of Verdu and the fresh details provided about its initial ambitions, Netflix gaming could happen sooner than you expect.
The General Plan and Estimated Price
Though not much about the project has been revealed, we know for sure that Netflix’s gaming expansion starts with mobile. They said in their second-quarter earnings report that their early efforts will be centered on mobile games and that the games will be included with users’ Netflix subscriptions.
However, it’s necessary to note that Netflix has no plans to raise its prices in the future. So it’s safe to assume that the gaming services will be added to the current subscription with no extra cost. Given that a year’s subscription to Xbox Live Gold costs $59.99, even the premium Netflix subscription seems like a steal.
Potential Release Date
The program is expected to begin within the next year, according to the Bloomberg article. However, it is not fully confirmed.
It can be fully expected of Netflix to debut it at one of the major trade fairs, such as the Games Developers Conference (GDC) in March 2022 or the E3. It will help get the attention of the gaming community in general.
Future of Netflix
On the other hand, if you’ve followed Netflix for a long time, you might see this as a significant shift from the company’s strategy, namely, its fixation on doing one thing well. It’s good that the company is extending its boundaries and free games are a logical extension of what the company is already doing.
However, gaming service is different from making TV shows and movies. That’s the main reason other major entertainment firms failed miserably when they first attempted to enter the game industry. But given the pandemic we are in, the trend of gaming and esports is rising and by the looks of it, it’s not going to stop anytime soon. The debut of the Netflix gaming service can prove to be a game-changer.
Also Read: Esports – A Growing Industry in India
That was our take on the situation. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. Keep following redjacket.gg for more updates. Keep gaming.
