Netflix Targets Stan Where It Hurts With ‘Free’ Movie Deal

Streaming provider Stan appears to have targeted Netflix if a puff piece in the Australian Financial Review this week, the AFR which is part of the Nine Entertainment owned media Company, now Netflix is hitting back by giving shows away for free.

In a move that could hurt Stan who despite cracking 2M subscribers and is struggling to hold onto content deals Netflix is offering 10 of its movies and shows for free, including hits like “Stranger Things” and “Bird Box,” stepping up its marketing of the streaming service in an increasingly saturated industry according to a new posting on their subscriber pages.

The company posted a list of titles on its website that nonsubscribers can see without logging in or signing up for a trial.

Viewers can watch movies in their entirety, but only the first episode of a show like “Stranger Things” is available free.

The free promotion is limited.

Though it offers some of the service’s best-known shows and movies, including “Love Is Blind,” “When They See Us” and “The Two Popes,” the preview only works on personal computers or an Android device according to Bloomberg.

“We’re looking at different marketing promotions to attract new members and give them a great Netflix experience,” a company representative said.

For now, the competition with Stan and the surging Binge, hasn’t hampered Netflix’s expansion.

In fact, pandemic-fuelled lockdowns supercharged growth in the first two quarters of the year with Stan facing the real possibility that subscribers could fall as their customers realise that the streaming service is lacking in mainstream content.

Netflix is available from both Foxtel and Fetch TV.