Netflix hits 200 million subscribers, with a huge boost from international viewers

Netflix continues its reign as king of the streaming space, recently announcing it has 200 million subscribers. The company has seen huge gains in the international market — 83% of its new subscribers come from outside the U.S. and Canada.

Netflix also announced it is so financially stable that it no longer needs to borrow money, and could perhaps begin paying back some of its $15 billion of debt.

As the number of streaming companies grows, so does the fear of churn. That’s when a subscriber signs up for a service to watch one or two movies or series, then drops their membership. Viewers used to be able to handle two or three streaming subscriptions at once, but paying for five or six every month may be overkill for many people.

A new survey from Deloitte reports that 46% of subscribers have cancelled a streaming service in the past six months. That’s perhaps why WarnerMedia released a trailer for its entire slate of 2021 movies coming to HBO Max. It hopes people will stick around for the entire year, rather than watch “Wonder Woman 1984,” then bail.

Meanwhile, other new streamers are still to launch. Paramount+ will go live on March 4, and there’s speculation that the studio may put a big movie like the “Top Gun” sequel on the service to draw signups. But star Tom Cruise is a huge advocate for the theatrical experience, so it may be a challenge to get him on board.