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Netflix Aims to Join the $1 Trillion Club
Streaming service shares financial performance targets with staff that underscore its dominance
by Jessica Toonkel and Suzanne Vranica
April 14, 2025 - 4:37 pm EDT
Netflix NFLX aims to achieve a $1 trillion market capitalization and double its revenue by 2030, ambitious goals that show its growing heft as the largest global streamer.
Executives were optimistic about the company’s growth prospects at the streamer’s annual business review meeting last month, despite growing concerns on Wall Street about the economy and trade-policy uncertainty. They shared with senior staff ambitious goals for revenue, ad sales and operating income by 2030, according to the people who attended the meeting.
Netflix, home to shows such as “Adolescence” and “Black Mirror,” aims to double revenue from $39 billion last year and earn about $9 billion in global ad sales by 2030, according to people who attended the meeting. Netflix doesn’t disclose its ad revenue, but research firm eMarketer estimates that U.S. ad revenues for the streaming giant will top $2.15 billion this year.
Executives also have a goal of tripling Netflix’s operating income by 2030 from $10 billion last year, according to one of the people.
The streamer, which currently has a market capitalization of almost $400 billion, has bolstered its fortunes in recent years by limiting password sharing, carefully raising prices and starting an ad business. While rivals struggle with ailing cable businesses and work to grow their direct-to-consumer services, Netflix has cemented its lead. Shares in the company are up more than 50% over the past 12 months.
The company, which had 301.63 million global subscribers at the end of last year, wants to end 2030 with around 410 million, that person said.
Last quarter—the final period in which Netflix plans to disclose net new subscribers—it added 18.9 million subscribers globally. Attracting new customers in the U.S., a crowded market, has added urgency to streamers’ international growth plans.
Netflix executives have told staff they plan to focus on increasing subscribers overseas, particularly in markets with high broadband penetration such as India and Brazil, some of the people said.
While Netflix has so far been insulated from the worst of the market tumult related to President Trump’s tariffs, further market volatility could complicate its growth ambitions. Advertisers are bracing for a significant downturn because of the tariffs, which could throw the U.S. economy into a recession and cause ad spending to plunge.
Executives at Netflix’s March meeting—before Trump unveiled steep tariffs—acknowledged the potential for a U.S. recession. Still, they said streaming could be less affected if people stay home to watch shows and movies, instead of going to theaters or out to dinner, people at the meeting said.
The company’s ad-supported tier, which launched in November 2022, started off slow but has gained momentum lately. Some 43% of U.S. customer sign-ups in February were for the ad-supported tier, compared with 40% in January, according to subscription research firm Antenna.
Although Netflix’s ad business is still in its infancy, MoffettNathanson analyst Robert Fishman said recently in a note to investors that it is “starting to gain scale,” which should unlock a new runway of growth in the business. Netflix is expected to largely replace Microsoft, its initial partner, with its own ad tech in the U.S. this month.
Netflix successfully wooed brands with the addition of live sports and benefited from reducing its ad rates last year, bringing rates closer to other streaming services, ad buyers said.
Netflix, along with its streaming rivals and TV networks, is gearing up for the annual ad selling season that starts in earnest next month. Netflix is expected to hold a glitzy presentation for advertisers at the Perlman Performing Arts Center in New York City on May 14.
Write to Jessica Toonkel at jessica.toonkel@wsj.com and Suzanne Vranica at Suzanne.Vranica@wsj.com
Netflix Aims to Join the $1 Trillion Club
Streaming service shares financial performance targets with staff that underscore its dominance
by Jessica Toonkel and Suzanne Vranica
April 14, 2025 - 4:37 pm EDT
Netflix NFLX aims to achieve a $1 trillion market capitalization and double its revenue by 2030, ambitious goals that show its growing heft as the largest global streamer.
Executives were optimistic about the company’s growth prospects at the streamer’s annual business review meeting last month, despite growing concerns on Wall Street about the economy and trade-policy uncertainty. They shared with senior staff ambitious goals for revenue, ad sales and operating income by 2030, according to the people who attended the meeting.
Netflix, home to shows such as “Adolescence” and “Black Mirror,” aims to double revenue from $39 billion last year and earn about $9 billion in global ad sales by 2030, according to people who attended the meeting. Netflix doesn’t disclose its ad revenue, but research firm eMarketer estimates that U.S. ad revenues for the streaming giant will top $2.15 billion this year.
Executives also have a goal of tripling Netflix’s operating income by 2030 from $10 billion last year, according to one of the people.
The streamer, which currently has a market capitalization of almost $400 billion, has bolstered its fortunes in recent years by limiting password sharing, carefully raising prices and starting an ad business. While rivals struggle with ailing cable businesses and work to grow their direct-to-consumer services, Netflix has cemented its lead. Shares in the company are up more than 50% over the past 12 months.
The company, which had 301.63 million global subscribers at the end of last year, wants to end 2030 with around 410 million, that person said.
Last quarter—the final period in which Netflix plans to disclose net new subscribers—it added 18.9 million subscribers globally. Attracting new customers in the U.S., a crowded market, has added urgency to streamers’ international growth plans.
Netflix executives have told staff they plan to focus on increasing subscribers overseas, particularly in markets with high broadband penetration such as India and Brazil, some of the people said.
While Netflix has so far been insulated from the worst of the market tumult related to President Trump’s tariffs, further market volatility could complicate its growth ambitions. Advertisers are bracing for a significant downturn because of the tariffs, which could throw the U.S. economy into a recession and cause ad spending to plunge.
Executives at Netflix’s March meeting—before Trump unveiled steep tariffs—acknowledged the potential for a U.S. recession. Still, they said streaming could be less affected if people stay home to watch shows and movies, instead of going to theaters or out to dinner, people at the meeting said.
The company’s ad-supported tier, which launched in November 2022, started off slow but has gained momentum lately. Some 43% of U.S. customer sign-ups in February were for the ad-supported tier, compared with 40% in January, according to subscription research firm Antenna.
Although Netflix’s ad business is still in its infancy, MoffettNathanson analyst Robert Fishman said recently in a note to investors that it is “starting to gain scale,” which should unlock a new runway of growth in the business. Netflix is expected to largely replace Microsoft, its initial partner, with its own ad tech in the U.S. this month.
Netflix successfully wooed brands with the addition of live sports and benefited from reducing its ad rates last year, bringing rates closer to other streaming services, ad buyers said.
Netflix, along with its streaming rivals and TV networks, is gearing up for the annual ad selling season that starts in earnest next month. Netflix is expected to hold a glitzy presentation for advertisers at the Perlman Performing Arts Center in New York City on May 14.
Write to Jessica Toonkel at jessica.toonkel@wsj.com and Suzanne Vranica at Suzanne.Vranica@wsj.com
