Netflix's total paid subscriptions have ballooned to more than 200 million in the fourth quarter last year courtesy of a massive increase in viweres as the coronavirus pandemic continues to keep people at home.
Netflix shares rallied by over 12% during after-hours session after the latest figures came out.
The feat comes after Netflix saw impressive growth in the first six months of 2020. But as the streamer takes pride breaching past the 200 million membership mark, it's also acknowledging that the current year likely will not see as many net subscribers increases every quarter.
Netflix on Tuesday announced it added 8.5 million paid users for the fourth quarter; it anticipated the addition of 6 million new accounts, while market observers at Wall Street estimated 6.04 million.
That's still lower compared to figures in past years - the company registered 9 million new members in the final quarter of 2019 alone - but the new subscribers bring the streamer's total membership tally to 203.6 million, a new record for the streamer of movies and original shows.
Netflix also said that its original television shows accounted for nine of the top 10 most searched series in Google last year.
After transforming the DVD-rental market, Netflix rolled out the then-revolutionary concept of streaming television shows and movies 14 years ago. During the time, the company only had 6 million paid memberships.
Netflix started to grow rapidly seven years ago when it began producing its own shows and fast-tracked a global expansion program that now spans over 190 countries.
Netflix said it now has the capability to rake in more money than it needs and no longer expects having to borrow cash to finance its growth strategy.
As the long-time leader of the streaming industry, Netflix seems unbothered by the emergence of new competition suchas Disney-plus.
"There are a wealth of options ranging from linear TV to video gaming to user generated content ... our strategy is simple: if we can continue to improve Netflix every day to better delight our members, we can be their first choice for streaming entertainment," Netflix said.
