Researcher Parks Associates said that about 30% of Netflix customers subscribe to its premium service, up from 21% in late 2017 and despite a price increase in October.
At the same time, Parks says uptake of Netflix’s basic tier has fallen from 35% to 27%.
Netflix charges about $7.99 per month for its basic service, $10.99 per month for its most popular standard package and $13.99 monthly for its premium tier.
"This shift reflects trends that we are seeing across the industry, beyond Netflix," said Parks senior director, research, Brett Sappington in a statement. "Netflix's basic tier is limited to one screen and SD quality, while the premium tier offers viewing on up to four screens and access to Ultra HD content. Many OTT-subscribing households have multiple people who want to watch similar content at the same time. Rather than competing for access, consumers are willing to pay extra for the convenience of multiple streams. At the same time, consumers want to watch on TVs, making HD viewing a must. Demand for Ultra HD TV is small but increasing."
Parks plans to detail this research and more at its upcoming conference the Future of Video: OTT, Pay TV and Digital Media, Dec. 10-12 in Marina del Rey, Calif.
