Netflix

Netflix to invest $2.5bn in new South Korea films and TV shows

The firm's co-chief executive Ted Sarandos made the announcement after he met South Korea's President Yoon Suk-yeol in Washington.

Mr Yoon is currently on a state visit to the US where he is expected to meet President Joe Biden on Wednesday.

Netflix has seen success with South Korean productions, including the hugely popular show Squid Game.

Mr Sarandos said the money will be spent on making movies and television shows in Asia's fourth largest economy.

Harry and Meghan denounce media harassment in Netflix documentary

In the first episodes of the couple's much anticipated Netflix documentary series, Harry, who stepped down from royal duties two years ago with Meghan, said he accepted people would fundamentally disagree with what he had done.

Britain's royal family have been braced for renewed criticism from the couple, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who have delivered scathing attacks on Harry's relatives, including his father King Charles and elder brother Prince William, since they moved to California.

Darlings: Bollywood's dark comedy on domestic violence wows India

Starring Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt, Shefali Shah and Vijay Verma in the lead roles, Darlings is the story of a young Muslim couple in love - and violence and revenge.

The film opens with the lovers - Badrunissa (Bhatt) and Hamza (Verma) - deciding to get married, but theirs is not a happily-ever-after story.

Three years into the marriage, the couple have made a home in a lower middle-class housing tenement, but Badrunissa is sleeping with the enemy.

Disney overtakes Netflix in race for subscribers

The firm reported 221.1 million subscribers across its three streaming platforms at the start of July.

That put it just ahead of Netflix, which has been losing customers.

But Disney warned that its loss of streaming rights for cricket in India would reduce its subscriber growth compared to previous forecasts.

The firm, which also owns general audience television platform Hulu and the sports-focused ESPN+, said demand for its Disney+ product remained strong.

Netflix adds warning to Stranger Things episode after Texas shooting

The first episode of the show’s fourth season will premiere worldwide on Friday, just days after the mass shooting at Robb elementary school in Uvalde. The season reportedly opens with a telekinetic massacre that includes the depiction of several dead children covered in blood.

Netflix cancels Meghan Markle animated series Pearl

The show, which was announced last year, is one of several projects being dropped by the streaming giant.

Last month, Netflix revealed a sharp fall in subscribers and warned millions more are set to quit the service.

That wiped over $50bn off the company's market value as experts warned it faced a struggle to get back on track.

Archewell Productions, the company formed by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, announced last year that Meghan would be an executive producer of Pearl.

Netflix pauses future projects in Russia

The company said it was assessing the impact of the current invasion of Ukraine.

Filming for the production of Russian language series Zato will be halted.

Elsewhere in tech, cloud computing company Oracle also said it has suspended operations in Russia.

The two companies are the latest US technology firms to take action against Russia as attacks on Ukraine's cities have escalated.

On Tuesday, Apple also announced that it was halting sales in Russia.

Inventing Anna: Fake heiress drama tops Netflix ratings

The nine-part show stars Ozark's Julia Garner as fake heiress Anna Sorokin.

It was watched for 196 million hours last week, on top of 77 million hours of viewing on the weekend of its release on 11 February.

The previous highest was psychological thriller show You, whose third season achieved 179 million hours in October.

Next on the list of the top English-language series are The Witcher, Maid and Sex Education.

Netflix faces rocky road after pandemic wins

Overall, Netflix added 18.2 million members last year - roughly half the number who subscribed in 2020.

Investors had hoped that pace would start to pick up again.

But the firm's 2022 forecast brought bad news, sending shares down almost 20% in after-hours trade.

The firm said it expected to add just 2.5 million members in the three months to March - far lower than analysts had expected.

Squid Game helps Netflix subscriptions pick up

The US firm added 4.4 million users in the three months to 30 September, more than double the previous quarter.

Korean TV series Squid Game was its biggest hit, watched by 142 million households in its first four weeks.

It comes as some Netflix staff prepare to walk out on Wednesday amid a backlash over comedian Dave Chappelle.

They accuse the star of mocking transgender people in his latest Netflix special, but the firm has defended him.