Coronavirus lockdown effect | Netflix adds 15.7 million subscribers in March quarter, more than double the estimates

Video streaming major Netflix reported a record 15.77 million paid net additions between January and March, more than double the estimates for the quarter and a 22 percent growth year-on-year.

This addition takes Netflix’s total paid subscriber count to 182.86 million.

Netflix, that serves as a key source of entertainment as a quarter of the world’s population is forced into lockdown, close to doubled its profit to $709.1 million profit from $344.1 million the previous year. Its quarterly revenue at $5.77 billion met analyst estimates.

Netflix expects $1.81 per share in earnings in Q2 this year, close to Wall Street analysts’ estimates of $1.54.

A major surge in Netflix accounts was seen in mid-March when several countries began to go under lockdown. Netflix’s stock price that hit a 52-week low of about $252.3 apiece on the Nasdaq around September 2019 has skyrocketed since the coronavirus outbreak-led lockdown to a 52-week high of $449.5.

However, in a letter to shareholders, the company also warned there has never been a future more uncertain or unsettling in its 20-plus year history.

As its contribution in the fight again the pandemic, Netflix said in the letter, it has created a $100 million fund to help with hardship the industry is facing, starting with workers on production hit hardest by the pandemic.

However, the news has not all been positive with the company citing a significant disruption when it comes to content production and customer support. You can read the full text of a letter from the company here.