Netflix Is Launching A New Cheaper Subscription – Here’s What You Need To Know

Netflix has confirmed it is launching a new, cheaper subscription plan on 3rd November.

Titled Basic with Ads, the new plan will cost £4.99 a month in the U˚K, which is £2 less than the current most affordable subscription. As its title suggests, the new plan will incorporate adverts into the Netflix viewing experience for the first time.

According to the streaming giant, these adverts will last for between 15 and 30 seconds each. They'll play before as well as during shows and films, and add up to around four or five minutes per hour of Netflix viewing. This is less than the 12 minutes of ads you'd expect to see on a traditional commercial channel like ITV or Channel 4.

In a statement announcing the new cheaper subscription, Netflix bosses said they feel confident they "now have a price and plan for every fan".

"While it’s still very early days, we’re pleased with the interest from both consumers and the advertising community — and couldn’t be more excited about what’s ahead," they added. In a bid to attract potential advertisers, Netflix will also be revealing viewing figures for its content for the first time.

When the new subscription launches in November, "a limited number of movies and TV shows won't be available due to licensing restrictions". However, Netflix says it's "working on" fixing this so that Basic with Ads has as much content as every other plan.

The new plan will be streaming only, though, meaning you won't be able to download content to your device for journeys where mobile coverage is likely to be poor.

The new, cheaper Netflix plan comes as many of us question which subsriptions really offer value for money as the cost of living crisis intensifies. Last year saw the launch on an app that promises to save you money by cancelling subscriptions after the end of the free trial period.