2025 proved to be another good year for Netflix, as its subscriber count continues to go up, up, up. The streamer announced that it has crossed 325 million subscribers worldwide as of the end of last year, up 25 million from before, after a heavyweight slate of Stranger Things, KPop Demon Hunters, Frankenstein, Knives Out: Wake Up Dead Man, and more kept eyeballs glued to the screen.
Additionally, it surpassed financial expectations for the fourth quarter, registering a 17.6 per cent boost in year-to-year revenue to US$12.05 billion and a net income of US$2.41 billion (up 29.4 per cent), which translates to 56 cents per share. Advertising also collected over US$1.5 billion in revenue, according to the company, with users watching a combined 96 billion hours. Stranger Things 5 was its best-performing Q4 title, while the viewing of Netflix originals rose by more than 9 per cent year over year in the second half of 2025.
In light of its latest earnings, the service plans to increase spending on originals and expand its lineup of licensed titles, starting with 20 shows from Paramount Skydance as part of its new U.S. licensing partnership with Universal Studios.
The announcement comes amid price hikes across all of its subscription tiers – a trend that has continued for three consecutive years – and preparations for its acquisition of Warner Bros. Studios and HBO Max, pending approvals.
“Together, Netflix and Warner Bros. will deliver broader choice and greater value to audiences worldwide, enhancing access to world-class television and film both at home and in theatres. The acquisition will also significantly expand U.S. production capacity and investment in original programming, driving job creation and long-term industry growth,” said Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos, who previously pledged to maintain a 45-day theatrical window for Warner Bros. movies, in a statement.
The streamer will also continue to double down on its artificial intelligence (AI) efforts, after announcing plans to incorporate AI tools for subtitle localisation, advertisement creation, and more by 2026.
“We continue to harness AI to enhance the experience for our members, and we’re expanding these capabilities to support our creative teams and advertisers,” said the company. “We also introduced automated workflows for ad concepts and used advanced AI models to streamline campaign planning, significantly speeding up these processes.
“In content production and promotion, we’re using AI to improve subtitle localisation, making it easier for our titles to reach more viewers around the world. Additionally, we’re implementing AI-driven tools to help with merchandising, which improves our ability to connect members with the most relevant titles for them to watch.”
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Kevin Low
