Netflix Kills Off Cheapest No-Ads Plan in U.S., U.K. as It Looks to Boost Customers on Ad-Supported Tier

Naman Ramachandran Netflix has unveiled the first trailer for series “Guns & Gulaabs,” starring Dulquer Salmaan (“Chup”) and Rajkummar Rao (“Bheed”). The series is created by India-based filmmaking duo Raj Nidimoru and Krishna D.K. – popularly known as Raj & DK – as part of a multi-year creative partnership with Netflix under their D2R Films banner.

In today’s episode of Bingeworthy, our TV and streaming podcast host Mike DeAngelo returns from the stars to discuss Marvel’s latest Disney+ series, “Secret Invasion.” The show follows Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) as he beams back from outer space in order to stop a rogue faction of Skrulls that are hell-bent on taking Earth for themselves.

grieving Jennifer Aniston reportedly isn’t dealing well with news that her recently deceased dad, longtime soap opera actor John Aniston, is about to be written off “Days of Our Lives” in a rather dramatic fashion.According to the Daily Mail, the character’s absence will finally be explained by killing him off in a plane crash. A source revealed that the aerophobic Aniston, 54, was disappointed by the decision.John Aniston starred in the soap opera “Days of Our Lives” as Victor Kiriakis from 1985 until his death last November at the age of 89.

Just a week after Suits broke a huge record on Netflix, one of the EPs is speaking out about a possible revival of the USA Network series.

Coronation Street star Sair Khan has told soap fans she's 'not okay' as she shared her reaction to a soap legend being killed off. While he doesn't appear alongside her on the cobbles, Bhasker Patel clearly meant a lot to the actress as she responded to his tragic exit from Emmerdale.

Netflix has sparked an outcry by listing a vacancy for a new $900,000-a-year product manager role for their AI Machine Learning programme in the midst of the SAG-AFTRA strike.The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) union went on strike earlier this month, after negotiations broke down with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) over streaming residuals and safeguards against AI technology.According to the job description, the Product Manager position will focus on “increasing the leverage of our Machine Learning Platform.” The MLP is Netflix’s in-house AI program, which has traditionally been used to power the streamer’s algorithmic recommendations. Per Netflix’s research page, the company is now making more use of the program to “optimise” film and TV production, although it’s not clear how they plan to do so.We all know one of the biggest issues both of the striking guilds, the WGA and SAG-AFTRA, have with AMPTP’s offer for a new contract is a lack of protection against and regulation of AI.

Verizon has reached a deal with YouTube and the NFL that will enable the mobile carrier and internet provider to offer new customers access to Sunday Ticket at no extra charge.

Tyler Baltierra‘s time at the gym has clearly been paying off!

In case you didn’t know… Lisa Rinna has still got it going on!! Like, VERY much so!

The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman tried to kill off Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) early in the TV series so audiences would “freak out”.During a panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday (July 22), the comic writer and show producer recalled how he wanted to deviate from the comic source material as much as possible during the early days of The Walking Dead series.“With Walking Dead, I was much younger and much more reckless,” Kirkman said (via Entertainment Weekly). “I was an absolute lunatic.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Spotify is finally set to hike the price of its music streaming subscription in the U.S. to $10.99 per month for an individual plan — up one dollar — according to a Wall Street Journal report. It’s a move that would be a long time in coming and follow similar increases by competitors. When Spotify’s U.S. price increase would go into effect is unclear. The Journal story, citing anonymous sources, said the price hike for United States customers is expected to be announced next week, followed by similar increases in “dozens of markets globally in the coming months.” Spotify has not changed the $9.99-per-month price of the ad-free Premium plan in the U.S. since it launched in 2011.

Kim Kardashian sure knows how to show off the ASSets!

Sean Bean fans have been complaining after the actor was killed off on screen for the 25th time in a new series.The actor has famously met his end in the likes of The Lord Of The Rings and Game Of Thrones, and fans have even set up petitions to stop filmmakers from killing him off in their projects.Bean plays Douglas Bennett in new BBC drama World On Fire, and fans have shared their anger after Bennett became the 25th character portrayed by Bean to die on screen.The second series of the show began to air at the weekend (July 16) and Bean’s character was killed as German bombs dropped on Manchester.Fans on Twitter have since spoken of their disappointment of the repeat occurence, with one tweeting: “So I guess I am hate watching World on Fire. Poor old Lesley Manville doing her best to actually make it watchable.

Netflix has dropped its cheapest ad-free plan in the US and UK.After it was first phased out in Canada last month, the basic ad-free tier which cost £6.99 in the UK and $9.99 in the US is no longer available in both countries for new and rejoining members.Those who are currently subscribed to the plan however will be able to keep the subscription, as long as you don’t cancel or change plans.In the company’s earnings call report posted on Wednesday (July 19), Netflix wrote: “In Q1, we lowered prices in a number of less penetrated markets, and in Q2, we phased out our Basic ads-free plans for new and rejoining members in Canada (existing members on the Basic ads-free plan are unaffected). We’re now doing the same in the US and the UK.“We believe our entry prices in these countries – $6.99 in the US, £4.99 in the UK and $5.99 in Canada – provide great value to consumers given the breadth and quality of our catalogue.”With the removal of the basic ad-free plan, Netflix now offers three subscription tiers; the £4.99/$6.99 per month ad-supported plan, the £10.99/£15.49 ad-free standard plan, and the £15.99/$19.99 per month premium tier which supports improved video quality.In the same report, Netflix said it saw the addition of 5.9million subscribers globally since March, following the streaming service’s crackdown on password sharing between households.

a crackdown on password sharing, which led to a huge subscription spike — presumably as freeloaders found themselves locked out.Unlike other services, Netflix did not show commercials until late 2022, when it began trialing an ad-supported plan. A recent report stated that just 5 million users had signed up for the option globally.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Netflix touted strong momentum for its push into advertising, claiming subscribers on its ad-supported tier nearly doubled in the second quarter of 2023. However, the streamer said, advertising revenue in Q2 was still not material in the context of its overall business. The company announced Q2 earnings Wednesday. Overall, Netflix netted 5.9 million new paid subscribers, amid its broader crackdown on password-sharing violators. On the ad front, “While we continue to grow our reach — ads plan membership has nearly doubled since Q1 — it’s still off a small membership base, so current ad revenue isn’t material for Netflix,” the company said in its quarterly letter to shareholders. “Building an ads business from scratch isn’t easy and we have lots of hard work ahead, but we’re confident that over time we can develop advertising into a multibillion-dollar incremental revenue stream.”

Netflix continues to tinker with its subscription plans, yanking its basic $9.99 ad-free offering. That leaves its new $6.99 advertising plan, its $15.49 ad-free plan and its $19.99 premium plan, according to the streamer’s sign-in page.

Joe Biden’s reelection campaign has drawn early support from a range of figures in entertainment, media and tech, including six-figure contributions from a list that includes Seth MacFarlane, Netflix’s Reed Hastings and OpenAI’s Sam Altman.

It’s a wrap for Buying Beverly Hills Season 2 filming. The Netflix occu-series has concluded filming for the second season of the show that follows agents and clients within Mauricio Umansky’s The Agency in Beverly Hills.

James Cameron is addressing rumors and speculation that he is planning a movie about OceanGate’s Titan submersible tragedy.