After refusing to work in Russia, the streaming service Netflix faced a serious crisis – the company recorded its first loss of subscribers in 10 years. In the first quarter of 2022, the service lost 200 thousand subscribers due to inflation and competition in the market. Another 700,000 viewers stopped using Netflix after it left the Russian market due to Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine. It is reported by Reuters with reference to the company’s report.

Other factors also contributed to the loss of subscribers. Thus, for the first time in two years, the price of a service subscription has increased in the USA – the price has increased from $ 13.99 to $ 15.49 per month.

Netflix also noted the “password sharing” trend of viewers – many users do not purchase subscriptions, but use other people’s accounts. The service aims to ban such actions and plans to charge users who share passwords in their accounts with other trackers.

It is also estimated that the service will lose about two million more subscribers in the second quarter of this year. This has already affected the value of the company’s shares, which has fallen by more than 25%. There are currently 221.64 million Netflix users worldwide.

Netflix noted that they are considering compensating for financial losses by making additional payments from viewers who use other people’s accounts. Also, the service plans to introduce a new, cheaper subscription option that will include ads, but that won’t happen before 2023. Netflix’s competitors HBO Max and Disney+ already have this option.

Previously, Netflix also refused to broadcast central Russian TV channels and stopped work on original Russian TV series.