For Netflix, it’s all about original content. Crediting original programming for subscriber and earnings growth, the streaming giant announced a plan to raise $1 billion to acquire even more original content, according to Venture Beat.
The company goal is 50-percent original content, with 1,000 hours of new programming available for streaming in 2017, Forbes reported. While Netflix does not release performance numbers for specific content properties, in a letter to investors, the company indicated Marvel’s superhero series Luke Cage, science fiction/horror hit Stranger Things, and crime drama Narcos were part of the growth and the “excitement around Netflix original content. ”
Related: Netflix subscriptions jump as ‘Stranger Things’ drives popularity
Netflix has had strong growth this year. In the second quarter of 2016, 1.8 million new subscribers joined the streaming service, and that figure almost doubled from July through September with 3.5 million new signups. Of the new subscribers in the third quarter, 3.2 million were international and 370,000 were located in the U.S., reports Forbes.
Regarding Netflix’s international growth, J.P. Morgan’s Doug Amnuth wrote, “… original content with global appeal” is of particular significance. Narcos is set in Columbia and overseas locations. Marseille is a French political drama and The Crown, set for release in November, is the story of Queen Elizabeth II.
In its note to investors, Netflix said: “The internet allows us to reach audiences all over the world and, with a growing base of over 86 million members, there’s a large appetite for entertainment and a diversity of tastes to satisfy.”
Earlier reports of an $800 million debt offering were raised to $1 billion. Netflix also announced it expects the senior note offering to close on October 27, 2016, according to Venture Beat. In a company statement, Netflix said it “intends to use the net proceeds from this offering for general corporate purposes, which may include content acquisitions, capital expenditures, investments, working capital and potential acquisitions and strategic transactions.”
