Netflix profits surge off ads, higher subscription prices

Netflix reported stronger than expected second-quarter results on Thursday, with profit jumping 45% year-over-year as the streaming giant benefited from subscription price increases and a growing advertising business.

Revenue climbed 16% to $11.1 billion in the quarter ended June 30, beating analyst estimates and the company's own guidance, while net profit surged to $3.1 billion, reports AFP.

The company raised its full-year revenue forecast, noting that it expects revenue to be between $44.8 billion and $45.2 billion in 2025, up from a range of $43.5 billion to $44.5 billion.

Netflix highlighted strong performance from its content offers in the quarter, with major hits including the third season of "Squid Game," which drew 122 million views.

It "has already become our sixth biggest season of any series in our history, with just a few weeks of viewing so far," the company said in a statement.

Other standout titles included the third season of "Ginny & Georgia" with 53 million views and "Sirens" with 56 million views.

There was also the animated film "KPop Demon Hunters" with 80 million views, which became "one of our biggest animated films ever" and generated a soundtrack that topped music charts globally.

"Korean content continues to be popular with our audience," the company said, pointing to the continued success of international programming that has become a hallmark of Netflix's global strategy.

Netflix expressed optimism about the second half of 2025, highlighting an upcoming slate that includes the highly anticipated second season of "Wednesday," the final season of "Stranger Things" and new films from major directors including Kathryn Bigelow and Guillermo del Toro.

The company has also announced plans to expand live programming with marquee boxing matches and NFL games, as it continues to diversify its content offerings beyond traditional on-demand entertainment.

Netflix shares have surged more than 40% year-to-date as investors have responded positively to the company's shift toward profitability, which saw it crack down on password sharing and turn to ads for more revenue.

The company counted over 300 million subscribers last December, at the end of a particularly successful holiday season, when it gained almost 19 million new subscriptions.

But the company no longer discloses these figures, in order to focus on audience "engagement" metrics (time spent watching content).

In the quarter, Netflix continued to build out its advertising capabilities, saying that it expects to roughly double ads revenue in 2025, though it did not provide specific figures.

The service is forecasting $9 billion in revenues from its ad-based subscriptions by 2030.

"With another robust earnings showing in Q2, Netflix continues a winning streak going back several quarters and cements its place as the leader among streaming services," said Emarketer analyst Paul Verna.