Netflix expanding into southern European market

Netflix is reportedly planning on expanding into southern Europe by the fall.

The company wants its TV-streaming service to be available in over 200 countries by the end of 2016.

Netflix will soon be available in Spain, Italy, and Portugal. There is still no word on how much Netflix plans on charging users in these countries though.

Last year when Netflix debuted in six different European countries at the same time the service cost users €7.99 per-month. Therefore it’s likely that the fee will be very similar, if not the same, in Spain, Italy, and Portugal.

Netflix is available in around 50 countries and boasts a whopping 62.3 million subscribers in total, of which 41 million are in the U.S.

However, as growth slows in the US the company is focusing on international expansion.

The Silicon Valley-based company is also expanding into Japan later this year.

Netflix to enter the Chinese market?

In a letter to shareholders on January 20, 2015, Netflix said:

“For China, we are still exploring options — all of them modest. We’ll learn a great deal if we can successfully operate a small service in China centered on our original and other globally-licensed content. That is our preference, for the next few years, if we are able to acquire the necessary permissions,”

Two weeks ago both Bloomberg and Dow Jones reported that Netflix was in early talks with several Chinese companies about potentially partnering in China. However, there’s been no word on whether those discussions materialized into anything significant.

Entering the Chinese market will prove to be a challenge for Netflix because of regulatory hurdles and the vast difference in consumer preferences.