Netflix is a worldwide application that streams movies and TV shows for those who subscribe. Subscribers pay a monthly fee and can either choose the basic plan which costs $6.99, the standard plan which costs $10.99, or the premium plan which costs $14.99. The difference between the three is obviously the price. However, another difference is that basic allows only one screen to use Netflix at a time, the standard allows two screens, and premium allows four. As of January 2019, Netflix has over 139 million subscribers worldwide, including 59 million in the United States. Although, Netflix announced that they will be making a few changes and this might upset many of their subscribers.

All of Netflix’s monthly fees will raise by two dollars. In an article written by The Verge, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings says, “Incremental price hikes will be needed as the company invests more money in original series and licensing popular programming.” Netflix feels as if it is necessary to raise its prices, even though this could potentially make it lose its subscribers, thus losing more and more money. “We are continuing to increase the content offering and we are seeing seeing that reflected in viewing around the world.” In December, Netflix announced that they will take off the series Friends in the new year and fans around the world tweeted at their account petitioning for the show to stay on. If fans care that much about one TV series, imagine what the media can do about having to pay more money to stream what they like.

Another change being made to Netflix is the use of promotional advertisements in between their episodes and/or the middle of a movie being watched. According to CNBC, “Now Netflix users might start to see ads for other shows during those countdown shows, as the streaming giant has said it is testing out recommendations.” Although this sounds like an annoyance to those who watch shows, this can be very helpful when not knowing what to watch next because the advertisements are based off of what the viewers like to play.

Sophomore Katie Budovec gives her opinion on the changes being made to Netflix. “I think that they already make enough money and it is a little ridiculous that they are raising it two dollars.” Katie says her family pay the standard plan ($10.99), and it would now be raised to $12.99. “Soon the [prices] are going to become more expensive than other streaming devices and people will probably stop using Netflix.” Katie states that if she were given the option between Netflix or Hulu, she would choose Hulu because she thinks it seems more organized overall.

It is tough to decide whether or not Netflix is making the right choices. However, it is important to share opinions on the subject and let the company know how they are doing.