Netflix (NFLX) has added one more feather to its hat, proving once again it is on an unstoppable path. The California-based video streamer toppled telecom giant Comcast (CMCSA) and topped the list of companies with substantial market value in the sector, where subscribers continue to cut the cord en masse.
Comcast, the biggest cable TV service provider in the US, was pushed to the second position when Netflix’s market value crossed the $150-billion mark this week. While Netflix expanded its subscriber base progressively in recent years, Comcast experienced a proportional depletion in market share.
In the first quarter of 2018, Comcast’s pay-TV subscriber base dropped 1.3% annually to 22.3 million. On the other hand, as many as seven million new subscribers joined the Netflix fold during the period. The statistics explain the reversal of their positions in the chart, though the companies do not operate exactly in the same sector.
Comcast was pushed to the second position when Netflix’s market value crossed the $150-billion mark this week
Multi-billion-dollar investments in original content and the ongoing efforts to ramp up its production portfolio – probably to face the threat from the video streaming service being rolled out by Walt Disney (DIS) – have added to the uptick in Netflix’s market value.
Of late, a lot has been happening at Netflix, the latest being a contract with former president Barack Obama and his wife Michelle. As per the terms of the widely-anticipated deal, the Obamas will produce shows based on inspirational stories and socially relevant topics, which obviously means that the platform will not be used for blasting Trump and propagating political agenda.
For the company’s stock, which hardly needs any big reason to bounce and set new records, the deal might have come as a stimulant. The stock continued its upward trajectory in early trading Thursday, hovering near the $350 mark.
In all probability, Netflix is destined to stay at the top in the foreseeable future, considering the widespread adoption of streaming services by the American youth, at the cost of traditional cable TV providers like Comcast.
While the growth of Netflix’s 120-million global paid subscriber base accelerates every quarter, a wider market is still left untapped.