Before Netflix and streaming, watching anything you wanted was a logistical nightmare. As an awkward, angsty teen in the late aughts, I grabbed at whatever distractions I could find to escape the woes of high school. On most days, that meant spinning the dial on my grandma’s ancient Sony TV, hoping to land on the last five minutes of a How I Met Your Mother finale, half a Spongebob episode, or, on particularly lucky afternoons, a Filipino-dubbed rerun of Meteor Garden. When I had spare money, I’d scour the shelves of local DVD stores, torn between The Human Centipede and She’s Dating the Gangster. Whatever I picked would inevitably vanish a few days later, “borrowed” by friends or cousins who’d forget to return it. Watching anything back then meant making peace with chaos: catching bits and pieces of stories and hoping those fragments were enough to help me keep up with the next day’s conversation at recess.
And then Netflix arrived.
Not to glorify Netflix, but the platform unquestionably reigned supreme in the world of streaming. From the first weighty opening “Tu-dum,” I was hooked. I binged Stranger Things, worried that the darkness of the Upside Down would one day come to Cebu City. There were days when I could only think about how good Charlie Cox looked in his tight superhero outfit on Daredevil. Netflix became my closest confidant during the pandemic, when I would lock myself in my room and binge-watch seasons of The Crown, Chef’s Table, and The Haunting of Hill House, sometimes all in one go. For years, Netflix was the default — the only subscription anyone in my circle could justify, or afford. And back then, it covered all the bases.
From its beginnings as a mail-order DVD service in 1997 to its reign as a streaming giant, Netflix has long established itself as a dominant force in the industry. While there were a plethora of platforms that came in the wake of Netflix’s success, they just couldn’t keep up. Netflix had what they didn’t: a massive head start, a killer recommendation algorithm, a global library of content, and the kind of cultural clout that turned its original series into instant must-watches.
“We didn’t want to be the best shipper of plastic, nor the best streaming technology,” Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph told Thought Economics when asked about the success of his platform. “We positioned ourselves as a great place to find stories.”
Fall From Grace?
However, it seems that Netflix, especially in recent years, has begun to lose a bit of its shine. Competitors like Disney Plus, HBO Max (formerly known as Max), and Apple TV+ have steadily built their own followings, each one offering their own high-budget originals and exclusive franchises that have pulled viewers (and their subscriptions) elsewhere.
Who can resist HBO Max’s Hacks, where viewers can delight in the blackmail-fuelled repartee between Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder? Or Disney Plus’ Andor, which we here in Rolling Stone Philippines described as “a unicorn in the Disney-Star Wars pantheon”? Or Apple TV+’s The Studio, where the grubbiest of Hollywood suits go toe-to-toe with even grubbier suits to get their movies made? Not to mention regional platforms such as Viu and iQIYI, where you can watch popular dramas from China, Japan, and South Korea.
Other platforms have clearly found their rhythm, and in doing so, they’ve chipped away at Netflix’s once-monolithic hold on the streaming world. Where Netflix was once the destination, it’s now just one of many, and no longer the obvious first pick.
But this begs the question: is Netflix even an obvious pick anymore? The shift in the streaming landscape isn’t just about competitors stepping up: it’s also about Netflix stumbling. The platform’s recent original cinematic projects, such as the Millie Bobby Brown fantasy film Damsel and the Kevin Hart heist movie Lift, reportedly demonstrated a quicker decay rate. This means that their viewership decreased more rapidly over time in comparison to more established, licensed titles like The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which the platform acquired from Universal.
Some recent Netflix Originals have also been outright labeled as flops. The Electric State, Netflix’s recent $320 million Millie Bobby Brown project directed by the famed Russo brothers, failed to impress, dubbed by fans and critics alike as a boring, unfunny, and costly misfire. Space Force, a satirical series spoofing the actual U.S. military branch from the creator of The Office and starring Steve Carell, was so monotone in its comedy that it was cancelled after two seasons. Bright, a fantasy-slash-buddy-cop-drama starring Will Smith and Joel Edgerton, got so lost in its surface-level social commentary that viewers were left with a muddled storyline that did not warrant a sequel.
Trends like this have led Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos to quietly pivot to licensing movies instead of creating original content, preferring to strike deals with studios like Universal and Sony to acquire global blockbuster hits. “[Licensing] is the more natural state of business,” Sarandos told Deadline. And while there’s nothing wrong with stacking the Netflix catalog with recognizable hits (who doesn’t love familiar blockbusters like Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse?), the shift suggests something more telling: Netflix is increasingly investing in other studios’ proven successes.
Although Netflix’s current strategy is proving lucrative for the platform — it reportedly saw a whopping 18.9 million new subscribers worldwide in the last quarter of 2024 — this has led to a wave of price increases that are leaving many longtime subscribers frustrated. Subscription prices have gone up in the U.S., Argentina, Canada, and Portugal.
In the Philippines, Netflix announced just this May that it would be hiking rates starting this June, following the implementation of the 12 percent value-added tax (VAT) imposed on digital services from foreign companies. The basic Netflix plan, previously priced at P249 per month, is increasing to P279.
Premium users, who paid P549 for ad-free viewing, will now be charged P619 monthly. By comparison, HBO Max offers its Standard plan at P269 and Ultimate at P399. Disney Plus charges P249 for its Basic plan and P519 for Premium. Subscribers can also enjoy a Prime Video subscription for P149 a month, and a Viu subscription for P169 a month.
However, it’s also important to note that other international streaming services will also be increasing their subscription prices to accommodate the 12 percent VAT. As of writing, the platforms listed above have yet to announce the changes in their prices.
Is There Hope?
While it’s tempting to frame Netflix’s trajectory as a tragic fall from grace, the truth is a bit more complicated. The platform may be changing, but it’s hardly fair to call this its downfall. Not every Netflix original project is a guaranteed success anymore, but there are recent shows — including the sci-fi thriller 3 Body Problem, the Emmy-winning black comedy Baby Reindeer, the third tantalizing season of the Regency era drama Bridgerton, and the one-take schoolboy murderer crime drama Adolescence — that have proven the platform still knows how to deliver binge-worthy, culturally resonant content.
Additionally, the Philippine-specific version of Netflix stands out by curating a strong lineup of classic Filipino films and bold new local releases. Several of Philippine cinema’s foundational movies, including Himala and Ora Plata Mata, can be streamed alongside more recent cinematic successes like Gomburza, Isa Pa With Feelings, and Hello, Love, Goodbye.
Adding to Netflix’s catalog of Filipino content are recent TV shows like Incognito, Maria Clara at Ibarra, and Can’t Buy My Love, which have helped attract a wider audience to Filipino storytelling. Beloved teleseryes like On the Wings of Love, starring love team Nadine Lustre and James Reid, along with Dolce Amore, starring love team Liza Soberano and Enrique Gil, are now also available on the platform.
Netflix has also invested $2.5 billion since 2023 into various types of Korean content, spanning K-dramas, miniseries, and films: an investment that’s paid off as K-dramas continue to drive subscriptions worldwide. Hits like When Life Gives You Tangerines, Hospital Playlist, Crash Landing on You, and It’s Okay to Not Be Okay have drawn in millions of viewers with their strong performances and heartwrenching storylines, making K-dramas a significant reason why many audiences choose to subscribe to Netflix. Subscribers reached soaring numbers in 2024, reportedly because of Netflix’s South Korean thriller series, Squid Game.
Does Netflix still wear the streaming crown? Despite a few missteps with original content and growing competition from emerging platforms, Netflix continues to hold its leading position, at least for now. It also looks like the platform’s continuing to churn out new releases, either original or licensed, as apparent in its stellar lineup of announcements for the upcoming Tudum, Netflix’s global fan event. Subscribers can look forward to the latest season of Wednesday, the final seasons of Squid Game and Stranger Things, and the newest addition to the Knives Out movie series.
If you still love the flavor of a Netflix Original, need a roster of good local movies to binge, and don’t mind a little price hike, then Netflix still remains a solid choice. But for more focused choices, there are other options for you to choose from.
