ROUNDUP: What Netflix Is Doing With Video Games
Plus, iOS VPNs are leaky, Longer lasting Brain-Computer-Interafces and more.
Netflix launched gaming in November 2021. It lets you play a couple dozen mobile games for no additional charge if you are a Netflix subscriber. The games are downloadable from he app stores on Android and iOS.
But not many folks play them. Apptopia recently estimated that fewer than one percent of Netflix's subscribers are playing its games on any given day. And downloads declined from December until May. Season 4 of Stranger Things reversed that trend as people played the two Stranger Things games, but the numbers still aren't huge.
You may consider Netflix's gaming strategy a flop.
You may also be a person who considered Netflix's streaming strategy a flop shortly after it was launched in 2007.
Protocol's Janko Roettgers has a deep dive up about Netflix's gaming strategy.
Roettgers points out that the small numbers should not be a surprise. Netflix hasn't launched any new titles. They are all old games that were launched somewhere else first. So they missed out on the big wave of adoption at a games initial release. And Netflix doesn't advertise its gaming service. Sea. Lot of folks still don't even know it exists.
This is not the final form of Netflix gaming. It's in learning mode. But there are some hints at what Netflix may be up to.
Netflix wants to make and launch original titles. How do we know? Netflix has acquired three game studios, including Next Games. And Netflix has multiple job postings around games that describe building a Game Studio Tech Lab with people who "learn fast, iterate quickly."
Netflix also seems like it might want to build a cloud gaming service. Because one job posting says “We are looking for a rendering engineer to support our cloud gaming service.” The job description talks about rendering games on cloud appliances and developing SDKs for game developers.
This is how Netflix does things.
In 2007, commenting on Netflix's new "Watch Now" feature -- that came at no additional cost with your Netflix DVD by mail subscription-- Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said "mainstream consumer adoption of online movie watching will take a number of years due to content and technology hurdles, the time is right for Netflix to take the first step. Over the coming years we'll expand our selection of films, and we'll work to get to every Internet-connected screen, from cell phones to PCs to plasma screens." It took a few years. But turns out he was right.
Compare that to last June when Netflix's director of game acquisition, Leanne Loombe said, “We’re still learning and experimenting and trying to figure out what things are going to actually resonate with our members.”
Netflix watch now was a free sometimes maligned add-on to its DVD-by-mail service until suddenly it was the more popular part of the service and was separated from the DVD part of the service. And since then Netflix has got into the original content business. While library material and acquisitions still Playan important part, Netflix's big attraction are its own brands. Stranger Things. The Crown. Money Heist. Squid Game. The Gray Man. Apparently.
And those brands can encompass video games. And video games can spur movies and TV shows. Netflix has said publicly that it plans on building franchises that span across movies, TV shows and games. That's what it's doing.
I wrote a bunch more this week as well. Here's what I wrote about.
- VPN is Leaky on iOS
- Spotify Adds Voice Reactions to Playlists
- Company That Bought Square Enix Buys Middle Earth Enterprises
- Oracle Begins Auditing TikTok
- Netflix Ad Tier Won't Include Offline Viewing
- Lyft's Robotaxis Launch to All for Free in Las Vegas
- Streaming Now Bigger than Cable in US
- Amazon Prime Video Will Get Nielsen-rated for Thursday Night Football
- Apple Ramps Up Production in Vietnam
- How to Make Brain Computer Interface Implants Last Longer
- Physical Buttons Outperform Touchscreens in Cars
- A Plan To Revive the Extinct Tasmanian Tiger
If you'd like more information on that hearty supplement to your tech news, subscribe to the paid version!
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Tom Merritt Tech Newsletter to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.