Microsoft wins deal to serve adverts on Netflix, edging out Comcast and Google

Netflix has employed Microsoft to supply the promoting expertise for the streaming service’s deliberate ad-supported tier, the businesses introduced Wednesday. Comcast’s NBCUniversal subsidiary and Google had been reportedly “prime contenders” to serve adverts on Netflix earlier than Microsoft received the contract.

Microsoft would be the “international promoting expertise and gross sales accomplice” for the “new decrease priced ad-supported subscription plan,” Netflix said Wednesday.

“Microsoft has the confirmed skill to assist all our promoting wants as we work collectively to construct a brand new ad-supported providing,” Netflix mentioned. “Extra importantly, Microsoft provided the pliability to innovate over time on each the expertise and gross sales facet, in addition to sturdy privateness protections for our members.” The ad-supported streaming subscription will likely be provided “along with our present ads-free fundamental, commonplace and premium plans,” Netflix mentioned.

Netflix additionally mentioned it is nonetheless “very early days and we’ve a lot to work by means of” earlier than launching the ad-supported tier, although the corporate recently told employees it plans to roll it out by the top of this 12 months. The plan for adverts was announced in April by CEO Reed Hastings amid slowing income development and a loss in subscribers.

Netflix hasn’t mentioned how a lot it’s going to cost for the ad-supported tier. Netflix prices within the US at the moment vary from $9.99 to $19.99 a month.

Microsoft’s buy of AT&T division helped it win deal

Microsoft issued its personal press release that mentioned, “All adverts served on Netflix will likely be completely accessible by means of the Microsoft platform.” It added that Netflix’s alternative “endorses Microsoft’s strategy to privateness, which is constructed on defending clients’ info.”

Microsoft has served adverts on the Bing search engine and its predecessors for a few years, however its skill to get the Netflix contract was reportedly because of its buy of the programmatic promoting system Xandr from AT&T. “It was the Xandr buy that gave Microsoft the expertise essential to turn out to be a contender within the high-profile race to win the Netflix partnership,” The Wall Road Journal wrote.

The selection of Microsoft “got here as a shock to some advert business executives as a result of Microsoft is not as well-known for its video advert capabilities as different corporations,” the WSJ wrote.