Netflix seemed to turn a corner.
Netflix took jabs at competitors and defended its strategies with the latest earnings report.
It avoided a third straight quarter of subscriber losses, and seems bullish on the future.
It was enough for executives to take a victory lap.
A new, more emboldened Netflix emerged as the company reported strong third-quarter earnings results. The streaming company gained over 2 million subscribers.
The results appear to have been enough for Netflix to take a victory lap. The company took jabs at competitors’ spending and content in its letter to investors, and defended binge-watching, which it popularized by dropping full seasons of TV shows at once.
Executives were joyful in their earnings interview. Co-CEO Reed Hastings exclaimed, “Thank God we’re done with shrinking quarters!”
Critics may argue that it’s too early for such jubilation. After all, Netflix is coming off of six months of slowing growth and heavy layoffs.
Its Q3 subscriber additions were still below the gains of other recent quarters, when it was growing rapidly.
The company appeared to send a signal to the haters: We know what we’re doing.