Netflix rolled out its mobile games on Tuesday hence pushing its boundaries to attain new subscribers. By going beyond its conventional film and show offerings, Netflix has ventured into a new stream of business to keep the old subscribers hooked and gain new.
The new venture will allow the subscribers to have the option of playing five different games on the app, including “Stranger Things: 1984,” “Stranger Things 3: The Game,” “Shooting Hoops,” “Card Blast” and “Teeter Up.” The games will first launch for Android phones and later will be available on Apple’s iOS.
In its shareholder letter in 2019, Netflix pointed towards the game “Fortnite” as its competition. Earlier this summer, it hired video game executive Mike Verdu. Verdu was already serving as the vice president of augmented reality and virtual reality content.
The games can be accessed through Netflix subscriptions and will not include advertisements or in-app purchases. While Netflix said it will build games as a standalone product that competes with other services, executives hope popular characters or games may be able to help with video content decisions in the future. For example, if the company recognizes a character is played in a game more often or one game does better than another, it could push the character or show to be featured more.
Netflix’s Chief Operating Officer and Chief Product Officer, Greg Peters said “Maybe someday we’ll see a game that spawns a film or a series that would be an amazing place to get to, to really see the rich interplay between these different forms of entertainment.”
