Since its official launch two years ago, Netflix’s ad tier has grown to 70 million monthly active users globally and accounts for over 50% of new sign-ups in 12 countries where the offering is available.
The milestone comes as the streamer has sold out all available in-game ad inventory for its upcoming NFL games on Christmas Day and brokered new partnerships with companies including FanDuel, Verizon and Kia.
FanDuel will be the exclusive pregame sportsbook betting partner with an in-show feature that will include Christmas Gameday talent, offering analysis and predictions aligned to FanDuel’s wagering odds for the games, while Verizon will be the official partner of a segment that will run before kickoff. All partners will also run traditional ad commercials throughout the live event.
Netflix is also partnering with Kia in Korea on the upcoming season of “Squid Game,” with its first single-title sponsorship in the country timed to the launch of the automaker’s new crossover SUV “The New Sportage.” The two companies collaborated on a three-part custom ad creative and will host an experiential pop-up at Kia Unplugged Ground, the motor company’s cultural complex in Seoul.
In addition to its partnerships with advertisers, Netflix touted the progress of its measurement efforts Tuesday.
The company has reached a deal with Nielsen for live ratings of the NFL Christmas Day Games, with the two parties collaborating on first-party streaming data. It also struck a deal with VideoAmp to deliver cross-screen and live viewership measurement starting with the launch of WWE in January.
Additionally, Netflix is partnering with Kantar Ibope’s campaign audience validation in Brazil to showcase cross-publisher reach and frequency, which will kick off in early 2025, and it expand its relationship with Barb in the U.K. last month to include the ad-supported plan, with viewers in the U.K. watching at least twice as much Netflix compared to the nearest competitors.
Netflix has also enabled programmatic guaranteed ad buying in the U.S., Brazil, Canada and Mexico, with plans to expand the capability to Europe in February 2025 and to Australia, Japan and Korea later in the year.
It plans to roll out its in-house advertising technology globally through 2025, with Canada already operating solely on the new platform. As it rolls out, Netflix said it would introduce enhanced forecasting capabilities and new targeting, reporting, measurement and insights.
