Netflix targets $17 billion in content spend this year; India top 3 market in revenue growth in Q2
India was Netflix's number 2 and 3 country in terms of paid net adds and percent of revenue growth in the second quarter.
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Netflix has targeted $17 billion in cash content spend this year, with increasing spends on sports even as the streamer looks to increase spending on entertainment and non-sports entertainment. In a recent earnings call, Theodore A. Sarandos, Co-CEO, President and Director, said, "Creating TV and films for a big global audience is a creative process. We're programming for more than 600 million people around the world who are watching us for a couple of hours a day, every day. So we've got our work cut out for us... And that $17 billion will grow as our revenue grows. It won't grow as fast as our revenue grows but it will grow to accommodate that."
In Q2, India was Netflix's No. 2 and 3 country in terms of paid net adds and revenue percent growth, respectively, helped by titles like Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, its biggest Indian drama series ever, and Amar Singh Chamkila — as well as licensed films such as Laapataa Ladies and Shaitaan.
Addressing a question about whether Netflix is hitting an inflection point in the market, Sarandos said, "India's growth is a story that we see around the world playing out very similarly."
Sarandos said, "Look at the content, the product market fit is what drives our ability to attract members and retain members and monetize with them as well. So I feel like what's going on in the quarter has been this ongoing build. We had this great show, Heeramandi, Sanjay Leela Bhansali. SLB is one of the most celebrated filmmakers in India, and he took on this incredibly ambitious series and brought it to screen on Netflix, directed every episode, and it's our biggest drama series to date in India."
"On top of that, our original films and our license films, films in the pay TV window, immediately following theatrical, continue to thrill our members. So we pick them well. We program well. We improve the product market fit. We improve engagement. We grow members. We grow our revenue. It's the same formula, I think, everywhere we go. And there's certainly plenty of room to grow in India as long as we keep thrilling our audiences there," added Sarandos.
Across streaming, pay TV, film, games and branded advertising, it’s a $600B+ market, and today Netflix accounts for just approximately 6% of that revenue.
