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Netflix is working on growing its subscriber numbers on its ad-supported version as it hopes to reel in business from new advertisers, according to the Wall Street Journal. The platform has around 5 mn monthly active users on its ad-supported plan, with more than 25% of new subscribers opting for ad-supported subscriptions, according to a company presentation last week. Despite the platform recording a larger stack of total subscribers than any other streaming service, Netflix’s ad-supported subscriber base is falling short of some advertisers’ expectations, the WSJ reports.
How’s Netflix doing against the competition? According to subscription analytics firm Antenna, Netflix’s USD 6.99 per month ad-supported subscription acquired 937.6k US subscribers in March while its rival Disney+’s ad-backed plan — which was launched a few weeks after Netflix’s — gained 863.8k subscribers. Disney-controlled Hulu had 20 mn ad-tier subscribers in the US during the month, while NBC Universal’s Peacock had 15.5 mn customers and Paramount+ had 10.7 mn,according to Antenna.
The G7 is coming for AI: Unchecked progression of artificial intelligence could be a powerful tool for disinformation and political disruption, the leaders of the Group of Seven countries believe, reports Bloomberg. In a meeting yesterday, the group established the Hiroshima Process, through which governments are set to hold cabinet-level discussions on rapidly advancing technologies to be presented by the end of the year. The creation of the Hiroshima Progress echoes calls for greater regulations of AI from industry and government leaders globally.
Who’s set to benefit — citizens, governments or the robots? It will be a challenge finding any international standard for governing AI, with differing social values and goals. The UK and EU want to input AI regulations, including banning its real-time use for identifying people in public, and requiring companies to make sure its users know when they are interacting with AI. Japan, on the other hand, tends towards “softer guidelines” towards AI usage that would enable the government to step in over major problems but allow technology to develop unencumbered by detailed laws.
