The rumors were true, but for now they will not cover as much as we thought. Netflix has announced that its subscription will include a section of mobile video games that its customers can enjoy at no additional cost. They have communicated this through a letter to their investors, where they detail that they will open a new section at no additional cost focused on mobiles.
Video games on Netflix
The rumor of the hiring of a former EA executive, Mike Verdu, made many begin to think about the arrival of a video game section to Netflix . That is exactly what will happen in the near future, since thanks to a letter sent to investors today we can know that the company will expand its virtual catalog with video games.
We are also in the early stages of further expansion into games, building on our previous efforts around interactivity (e.g. Black Mirror Bandersnatch) and our Stranger Things games. We see games as another new category of content for us, similar to our expansion to original movies, animation, and television. Games will be included in members’ Netflix subscription at no additional cost similar to movies and series. Initially, we will focus mainly on games for mobile devices. We are excited as ever about our film and TV series offering and look forward to a long road of increased investment and growth across all of our existing content categories, but with our drive toward original programming almost a decade now, we believe that it is the right time to learn more about how our members value games.
First for mobile
The intentions are clear, but for now, the way to land games will be the simplest and most viable way for Netflix: through mobile phones. This is the platform that leads content consumption today, so it makes a lot of sense to focus on it. However, the key to this will be in the way the service offers the games. Are they going to be streaming games like Xbox cloud gaming or are they downloadable games?
At the moment there are not too many details of the implementation, so we will have to wait until they share more data about it. Nor do we know if the new section will arrive this year or if, on the contrary, we will have to wait until 2022. We’ll see if they get us out of doubt soon.
The public is at the games
Some statements made in 2019 by the company’s co-CEO, Redd Hastings, were quite revealing to understand the current situation. The manager assured that Fortnite did them more damage than HBO, a comparison that in principle could be meaningless, since HBO was at that time its most direct rival and Fortnite was simply a video game, but that revealed the place where users more young people spent their time. Instead of watching series and movies, they played games, and that has been the challenge Netflix has set for itself, to get the attention of this valuable audience.
