According to the latest news, Netflix has revealed that its initial efforts in gaming will be focused on mobile games. Back in Tuesday, the company announced that these games will be included in ongoing Netflix subscriptions. A few days back, Netflix hired former EA and Oculus exec Mike Verdu to head up its gaming work.
In its letter to investors, Netflix discussed about its future plans with games more elaborately. The company said “We’re also in the early stages of further expanding into games, building on our earlier efforts around interactivity (eg, Black Mirror Bandersnatch) and our Stranger Things games. We view gaming as another new content category for us, similar to our expansion into original films, animation, and unscripted TV. Games will be included in members’ Netflix subscription at no additional cost similar to films and series. Initially, we’ll be primarily focused on games for mobile devices. We’re excited as ever about our movies and TV series offering and we expect a long runway of increasing investment and growth across all of our existing content categories, but since we are nearly a decade into our push into original programming, we think the time is right to learn more about how our members value games.”
As of now, there is no hint or indication from the company that what types of games will actually be available on the platform. It is to be noted that recently, Netflix extended its TV deal with Shonda Rhimes to include feature films and gaming content. As of now, there is also no word from the company that how the games will be delivered to the Netflix subscribers.
Previously, the company has acknowledged in the past that it competes with other gaming companies. In the past, in 2019, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings has stated “we compete with (and lose to) Fortnite more than HBO”. Back in April this year, Netflix COO Greg Peters has discussed the company’s interest in games at the time of releasing 1st quarter earning statements. If you are interested to read the full details of what Peters said, you can check out this PDF. Netflix has now dipped its toes into gaming with experiences like Black Mirror: BandersnatchandCarmen Sandiego.
It seems, with Verdu on board, Netflix is now more focused on games than ever. We have to wait and watch what kind of gaming ecosystem the company is secretly building.
