Competing With Disney And Amazon, Netflix Ate Its Words To Lower Subscription Prices In India

JAKARTA – Netflix on Tuesday, December 14 cut the price of its streaming service in India, for the first time since its launch five years ago in the South Asian country. Today Netflix is constantly moving to better compete with its fierce rivals, Disney and Amazon.

The streaming giant slashed prices by 60%, to 199 rupees (Rp37,500) per month, for its basic plan that lets users watch content on a single device, Netflix sources said in a blog post quoted by Reuters.

The price of its mobile-only plans will drop by a quarter to 149 rupees, with the overall price of various plans falling 18% to 60%.

The new prices are "true 'Money Theft'", Netflix said in its announcement, using the name of one of its popular television shows, but without giving any reason for it.

For years, Netflix has priced its products well above competitors in India such as Disney and Amazon, citing much higher incomes for households who speak English and watch entertainment in the language.

Netflix's move reflects its efforts to target expansion beyond its biggest cities, said an entertainment industry analyst who requested anonymity.

"To capture this market, it is necessary to lower" costs, added the analyst, who is based in the financial capital Mumbai, as the company competes with big rivals.

Amazon Prime Video charges 179 rupees per month, but, unlike Netflix, it allows users to watch content simultaneously on multiple devices from the same account, and offers a cheaper annual payment plan.

Disney+ Hotstar is offering an annual premium plan with access to all of its content in 4K for 1,499 Indian rupees.

Disney+ Hotstar makes up slightly less than 40% of Disney+'s total 116 million customer base, the company said in this year's earnings call. Netflix and Amazon do not disclose their figures by country. The decision to lower prices this time is like Netflix licking its own saliva.

In 2018, Netflix said India could ship its next 100 million subscribers.

At the time, Chief Executive Reed Hastings told Reuters in an interview that the company had no plans to lower its prices in India, adding, "We have no pricing issues."

Netflix previously said 2021 would be its biggest year in India, releasing more than 40 new titles, including films featuring top Bollywood actors, stand-up comedy shows and original series.