Kenya Insights

Tag: Netflix

  • ‪Netflix Profits Surge Off Ads, Higher Subscription Prices‬

    ‪Netflix Profits Surge Off Ads, Higher Subscription Prices‬

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

    Revenue climbed 16 percent 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.

    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 percent 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.

    (AFP)

  • Carbon Credits Crisis: Maasai Herders Win Landmark Case Against Corporate Giants

    Carbon Credits Crisis: Maasai Herders Win Landmark Case Against Corporate Giants

    In a significant blow to major tech corporations’ environmental initiatives, a Kenyan court has ruled in favor of local Maasai herders in a dispute over carbon credits that could potentially cost companies like Netflix and Meta billions in invalid offsets.

    The Northern Kenya Rangelands Carbon Project, touted as the world’s largest soil-carbon plan covering 4.7 million acres of grasslands, has been suspended by Verra, the international nonprofit that certifies carbon credits.

    This suspension follows the court ruling that found project developers had not properly secured consent from the indigenous communities whose lands were being used.

    “The project completely destroyed the traditional system and brought another one, which is like a displacement,” said Hassan Bidhu, one of the plaintiffs who challenged the project in court.

    The 33-year-old herder claimed that grazing restrictions imposed by the carbon project prevented him from accessing traditional dry-season pastures during Kenya’s devastating 2022 drought, resulting in cattle losses.

    The ruling potentially invalidates approximately 20% of the project’s credits, with rights groups suggesting that credits in around half of the project’s 14 wildlife conservancies could be vulnerable to similar legal challenges.

    This creates a precarious situation for corporations like Netflix and Meta, which have spent between $42 million and $90 million on over six million carbon credits to offset their substantial carbon footprints from energy-intensive operations.

    Both companies have used these credits to claim carbon neutrality – Meta in 2020 and Netflix in 2022. Representatives from both corporations defended their purchases, stating the credits had been “rigorously verified,” including by Verra.

    The dispute centers on allegations that the Northern Rangelands Trust, which runs the project, created conservancies through “pressure and intimidation rather than informed consent” from the pastoralist communities.

    While the trust has appealed the decision, the controversy highlights growing tensions in the rapidly expanding carbon offset market, which Morgan Stanley projects will grow from $1.4 billion today to between $7 billion and $35 billion by 2030.

    “This raises big questions about what the carbon industry will do about this,” said Simon Counsell, who co-authored a report on the issue with indigenous-rights group Survival International, noting companies might be forced to surrender invalid credits.

    The conflict reflects a broader clash between corporate environmental goals and indigenous rights.

    While some pastoralists support the project, citing benefits like new hospitals, scholarships, and wells, opponents argue that project restrictions disrupt centuries-old migration patterns based on seasonal rainfall and pasture availability.

    Similar disputes are emerging elsewhere, with violent protests recently erupting over a carbon project in southern Kenya.

    Maasai activists in neighboring Tanzania have called for a five-year suspension of carbon projects, with rights organizations warning that these initiatives could eventually lock nearly all ancestral Maasai lands into offset projects or protected areas.

    For 23-year-old Gedion Kanchori, who is leading opposition efforts in southern Kenya, the issue is existential: “This land is our inheritance. We will do anything to protect it.”

    As corporations face increasing pressure to meet climate commitments, this ruling serves as a stark reminder that environmental solutions must include meaningful consultation with and consent from indigenous communities to be truly sustainable.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

  • Netflix Is Increasing Its Subscription Fee

    Netflix Is Increasing Its Subscription Fee

    In Summary

    • Netflix announced better-than-expected subscriber numbers, helped by the second series of South Korean drama Squid Game as well as sports including a boxing match between influencer-turned-fighter Jake Paul and former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson.
    • In the US, prices will increase across almost all plans including the standard subscription with no adverts which will now cost $17.99 (£14.60) a month, up from $15.49.

    Netflix will raise prices across a number of countries after adding nearly 19 million subscribers in the final months of 2024.

    The streaming firm said it will increase subscription costs in the US, Canada, Argentina and Portugal.

    “We will occasionally ask our members to pay a little more so that we can re-invest to further improve Netflix,” it said.

    Netflix announced better-than-expected subscriber numbers, helped by the second series of South Korean drama Squid Game as well as sports including a boxing match between influencer-turned-fighter Jake Paul and former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson.

    In the US, prices will increase across almost all plans including the standard subscription with no adverts which will now cost $17.99 (£14.60) a month, up from $15.49.

    Its membership with adverts will also rise, by one dollar to $7.99.

    The last time Netflix raised prices in the US was October 2023, when it also lifted costs for some plans in the UK.

    Asked if prices were set to increase in the UK, a spokesperson for Netflix said there was “nothing to share right now”.

    Meanwhile, the company said it finished last year with more than 300 million subscribers in total. It had been expected to add 9.6 million new subscribers between October and December but far surpassed that number.

    It is the last time that Netflix will report quarterly subscriber growth – from now on it said it will “continue to announce paid memberships as we cross key milestones”.

    As well as Squid Game and the Paul v Tyson fight, Netflix also streamed two NFL games on Christmas Day.

    It will also broadcast more live events including WWE wrestling and has bought the rights for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2027 and 2031.

    Paolo Pescatore, a technology analyst at PP Foresight, said Netflix “is now flexing its muscles by adjusting prices given its far stronger and diversified programming slate compared to rivals”.

    Net profit between October and December doubled to $1.8bn compared to the same period a year ago.

    Sales rose from $8.8bn to $10.2bn.

    (BBC)

  • Maasai Fight Carbon Project That Sold Credits To Meta, Netflix

    Maasai Fight Carbon Project That Sold Credits To Meta, Netflix

    Members of Kenya’s Maasai pastoralist community are clashing with managers of a major carbon project, raising new concerns that international demand for carbon credits generated in Africa could have damaging consequences for local communities.

    The Northern Kenya Rangelands Carbon Project (NKRCP), which describes itself as the world’s largest soil carbon removal project, has sold carbon credits to corporations including Meta, Netflix and UK bank NatWest. It restores and maintains grasslands to absorb carbon by managing the grazing patterns of livestock herds on the 4.7 million acres it covers. Absorbing carbon allows it to generate carbon credits, which can be purchased by corporations to compensate for their greenhouse gas emissions.

    Many members of affected local communities say the project is disrupting their ways of life and denying them access to their ancestral land. Some also say it puts women at risk due to harsh work conditions in some areas.

    Community activists working in Baringo, Narok and Kajiado counties in Kenya, where the project operates, say that NKRCP had failed to undertake proper public participation or educate local communities, leading to complaints from members of affected communities and resistance to the project’s efforts to fence off land in some areas.

    They claimed that the Northern Rangelands Trust (NRT), which runs the project, has failed to gain the informed consent of affected communities for the carbon project as is legally required, despite the NRT’s insistence that it has letters of consent.

  • Dave Chapelle Addresses Netflix Transgender Controversy In New Standup Video

    Dave Chapelle Addresses Netflix Transgender Controversy In New Standup Video

    Dave Chappelle has spoken out about the controversy over his Netflix special “The Closer” in a new stand-up video, saying that he is willing to meet with transgender Netflix employees or other members of the trans community, but won’t bend “to anybody’s demands.”

    In the video, Chappelle remained unapologetic about the special — which was accused of containing transphobic and homophobic remarks and led to a walkout at Netflix — saying: “I said what I said.”

    “It’s been said in the press that I was invited to speak to the transgender employees of Netflix and I refused. That is not true — if they had invited me I would have accepted it, although I am confused about what we would be speaking about,” Chappelle said in the video. “I said what I said, and boy, I heard what you said. My God, how could I not? You said you want a safe working environment at Netflix. It seems like I’m the only one that can’t go to the office anymore.”

    Chappelle claimed that the controversy was about “corporate interests” and that some members of the LGBTQ+ community have been supportive of him.

    “I want everyone in this audience to know that even though the media frames it that it’s me versus that community, that is not what it is. Do not blame the LBGTQ [sic] community for any of this shit. This has nothing to do with them. It’s about corporate interests and what I can say and what I cannot say,” Chappelle said. “For the record, and I need you to know this, everyone I know from that community has been loving and supporting, so I don’t know what all this nonsense is about.”

    Chappelle also spoke about his upcoming documentary about his summer 2020 comedy tour, claiming that it has now been excluded from film festivals.

    “This film that I made was invited to every film festival in the United States and some of those invitations I accepted. When this controversy came out about ‘The Closer,’ they began disinviting me from these film festivals,” Chappelle claimed. “And now, today, not a film company, not a movie studio, not a film festival, nobody will touch this film. Thank God for Ted Sarandos and Netflix, he’s the only one that didn’t cancel me yet.”

    Though Chappelle said he was willing to meet with members of the trans community, he jokingly listed off a slew of conditions that would have to be met: “To the transgender community, I am more than willing to give you an audience, but you will not summon me. I am not bending to anybody’s demands. And if you want to meet with me, I’d be more than willing to, but I have some conditions. First of all, you cannot come if you have not watched my special from beginning to end. You must come to a place of my choosing at a time of my choosing, and thirdly, you must admit that Hannah Gadsby is not funny.”

    Chappelle closed out the video by saying he plans to make his movie available in 10 cities, and then asked the audience: “Am I canceled or not?”

    The release of “The Closer” resulted in a reckoning at Netflix, with co-CEO Ted Sarandos defending the special and trans employees and allies of the streamer hosting a walkout in protest on Oct. 20. During the walkout, organized by Ashlee Marie Preston, “a list of firm asks” was presented to Sarandos, and Preston told Variety that Chappelle was invited to speak to the organizers, but refused the opportunity.

    Watch the full video below.

  • Netflix To Partner With Nickelodeon In The Battle Against Disney+

    Netflix To Partner With Nickelodeon In The Battle Against Disney+

    Yesterday, Netflix, the streaming giant that it has partnered with Nickelodeon on a multi-year content deal to produce new original animated movies and series based both on the Nickelodeon library of characters as well as all-new IP – for kids and families around the world.

    This marks an expansion of the existing relationship between the companies, which has already brought several popular titles to Netflix, including animated specials Rocko’s Modern Life: Static Cling and Invader Zim: Enter the Florpus. Also forthcoming are specials based on The Loud House and Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

    “Nickelodeon has generated scores of characters that kids love, and we look forward to telling wholly original stories that re-imagine and expand on the worlds they inhabit. We’re thrilled to continue collaborating with Brian Robbins, Ramsey Naito, and the creative team at Nickelodeon in new ways as we look to find fresh voices and bring bold stories to our global audience on Netflix.” said Netflix vice president of original animation, Melissa Cobb.

    “Nickelodeon’s next step forward is to keep expanding beyond linear platforms, and our broader content partnership with Netflix is a key path toward that goal. The Nickelodeon Animation Studio is home to the world-class artists and storytellers behind some of the most iconic characters and shows ever made, and our head of Animation, Ramsey Naito, has been building on that legacy over the past year by ramping up development and production exponentially.  The ideas and work at our Studio are flowing, and we can’t wait to work with Melissa and the Netflix team on a premium slate of original animated content for kids and families around the world.” said Brian Robbins, President, Nickelodeon.

    The upcoming 2019 animated Netflix slate includes family animated feature film Klaus from Sergio Pablos (streaming November 15), kids animated series Dino Girl Gauko from Japan (streaming November 22), adult animated film I Lost My Body from Jérémy Clapin (streaming November 29), and Fast & Furious Spy Racers from DreamWorks (streaming December 26), among others.

    “Nickelodeon has generated scores of characters that kids love, and we look forward to telling wholly original stories that re-imagine and expand on the worlds they inhabit. We’re thrilled to continue collaborating with Brian Robbins, Ramsey Naito, and the creative team at Nickelodeon in new ways as we look to find fresh voices and bring bold stories to our global audience on Netflix.” Melissa Cobb, Netflix vice president of original animation, said in a statement.

    Netflix needs to step up or see dust as Disney+, a service that’s positioned itself to dominate the kid-friendly services arena and not only does Disney+ house Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars, and National Geographic, it also owns Hulu. For Netflix to take on Disney+ head-on, it’s going to need more than Nickelodeon offshoots.

    Netflix must also note that they have been losing subscribers and pivot away from quantity over quality. There is an upsurge in the streaming services industry with major competitors like Apple TV coming in to sway away their customers from already struggling Netflixbase.