Netflix will develop and launch its own advertising platform technology and stop relying on products offered by Microsoft to power the ad-supported version of its streaming service, the company announced on Wednesday.
The announcement came as Netflix reported its ad-supported tier of service had grown to 40 million monthly active users, nearly twice as many users as the company reported at the start of the year.
Microsoft has served as a close advertising partner for Netflix since the company revealed plans to launch an ad-supported tier of service back in 2022. Last year, reports indicated Netflix wanted to restructure its ad partnership with Microsoft in order to charge marketers less money for more ad inventory.
While Netflix is moving away from Microsoft’s advertising technology, Microsoft will continue to serve as a programmatic advertising partner, the company affirmed.
In the United States, Netflix charges around $8 per month for access to its ad-free tier of service, which includes most Netflix content served with short ad breaks. A commercial-free tier of service is also available, starting at $15.50 per month.
Like other services, Netflix has steadily increased rates on customers over the past few years as it seeks to recoup costs associated with sizable investments in content production and marketing.
To help reach price-sensitive customers, Netflix and others have introduced ad-supported tiers of their services that are priced lower when compared to their premium, ad-free options.
