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Morning Edition

January 22, 2025

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Netflix released its quarterly earnings Tuesday, and the company hit a massive milestone: 300 million subscribers. The company’s stock soared based on the news, which had a lot to do with its recent investment in sports.

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]] and Colin Salao [[link removed]]

Netflix Stock Soars As Sports Help It Exceed 300M Subscribers [[link removed]]

Netflix

The role and importance of sports to Netflix was hardly in debate anymore, but the power of the programming was fully confirmed in the company’s fourth-quarter earnings.

The streaming giant said late Tuesday that it now has 301.6 million global subscribers, up from 282.7 million in October [[link removed]], and that it generated a 16% lift in revenue to $10.2 billion. Net income roughly doubled from the comparable period in 2023 to nearly $1.9 billion. The subscriber increase, more than double what analysts expected, is the single-largest quarterly gain in company history.

Netflix’s fiscal fourth quarter was highlighted by two major events, both in sports: its entry into live NFL games with a Christmas Day doubleheader, averaging more than 24 million average viewers [[link removed]], according to Nielsen data, and a Jake Paul–Mike Tyson boxing match that, according to somewhat-debated internal metrics [[link removed]], attracted more than 60 million households around the world.

Both were historic for Netflix, as the boxing match is the company’s most-streamed sporting event ever, while the Christmas Day NFL showcase still represents the league’s most-streamed games—even beating a recent playoff matchup shown on Amazon [[link removed]].

Now into 2025, the Netflix sports push continues, particularly with the start of live streaming of WWE’s Raw [[link removed]] and the recent acquisition of rights to the FIFA Women’s World Cup [[link removed]].

“We’re not focusing on acquiring rights to large regular-season sports packages; rather, our live strategy is all about delivering can’t-miss, special-event programming,” Netflix said in a letter to shareholders. “Although our live programming will likely be a small percentage of our total view hours and content expense, we think the eventized nature will result in outsized value to both our members and our business.”

This quarterly report is set to be the last from Netflix in which it will disclose subscriber totals, opting instead to focus on other metrics, and reporting updated subscriber counts as key milestones are crossed. Even without those particular totals each quarter, though, the company remains a dominant force in streaming. The company also rolled out price increases across most of its plans, with individual tiers generally rising by $1 to $2.50 per month.

Investors cheered the latest results, sending Netflix stock up by more than 13% in after-hours trading late Tuesday. The company’s shares have already soared by nearly 80% in the last year.

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This week on Redefined, Leslie Osborne and Arielle Houlihan are joined by Rebecca Lowe, NBC Sports’ Premier League and Olympics daytime host. As a trailblazer in sports broadcasting, Rebecca shares her journey of breaking barriers and mentoring the next generation of female talent in the industry.

In this episode, Rebecca talks about her “jet life,” balancing weekends away from her family while splitting time between Sacramento and Connecticut. She also dives into navigating, “mom guilt,” her passion for mentorship, and how she helped transform Ted Lasso from a sketch to one of television’s biggest hits.

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Watch the full [[link removed]] Redefined [[link removed]] episode here [[link removed]].

NFL Divisional Playoff Viewership Drops Despite Plenty of Drama [[link removed]]

Democrat and Chronicle

Plenty of drama in both of Sunday’s NFL divisional-round playoff games was not enough to prevent an extension of the league’s downward slide in its viewership.

The evening AFC matchup on CBS between the Ravens and Bills—a high-octane clash between NFL MVP favorites Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson, the most-anticipated game of the weekend, and won by Buffalo 27–25—drew an average of 42.2 million, according to preliminary data, down 16% from the comparable game last year. The game was the worst-performing divisional playoff contest in that slot since 2021.

This game, like many others in the NFL this season, went up against a rather difficult comparison from 2023, as last year’s divisional matchup in the same window, between the Chiefs and Bills, drew an average of 50.4 million, setting a record as the most-watched NFL divisional playoff game ever [[link removed]]. Even with the year-over-over decline, the Ravens-Bills game established a new mark as the league’s most-watched contest of the 2024 season—though that’s now poised to be topped by the upcoming conference title games Sunday.

The Sunday afternoon game between the Rams and Eagles on NBC, meanwhile, posted a total audience delivery of 37.8 million viewers, down 6% from a comparable 40.4 million for a Buccaneers-Lions game in that slot last year.

The game, won by the Eagles 28–22, still represented the fourth-best divisional playoff rating in NBC history, dating to Nielsen’s 1988 introduction of its People Meter measurement system and covering 33 such games on the network over that time.

The Sunday results followed prior viewership attrition seen during the NFL’s regular season [[link removed]], the wild-card round [[link removed]], and earlier in the divisional playoff round [[link removed]].

Quarterbacks Cashing In

The NFL stage is set for Sunday: two conference championship games, four quarterbacks—and one shot at Super Bowl glory.

Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts has the highest average annual salary ($51 million) among the four QBs left in the NFL postseason. However, Chiefs signal-caller Patrick Mahomes has the largest total contract of the four—and in the entire NFL—at $450 million, a deal he signed in 2020 that runs for 10 years.

NFC: Washington at Philadelphia, 3 p.m. ET (Fox) AFC: Buffalo at Kansas City, 6:30 p.m. ET (CBS)

Bills quarterback Josh Allen, who is the favorite to win his first MVP [[link removed]] this year, is 14th in average annual salary among QBs ($43 million)—but his contract could be extended and restructured in the offseason, putting him closer to the $60 million range that the highest-paid signal-callers in the NFL are paid annually.

Unsurprisingly, Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels is last on the list given he is just starting on his rookie deal. The No. 2 pick in the 2024 draft is earning under $10 million this year. But given his play in his first season, Daniels should be in line to receive a record-breaking contract when he is eligible following the 2027 season.

LOUD AND CLEAR Almost Unanimous Glory

Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

“We think fans from all across America, all across the world, are coming to Cooperstown.”

—Baseball Hall of Fame president Josh Rawitch during Tuesday evening’s announcement of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America voting results of the 2025 induction class to the shrine. The group elected Ichiro Suzuki, the first Japanese player to reach the Hall of Fame. CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner also cleared the necessary 75% vote threshold. Suzuki missed by one vote being the second player elected unanimously.

The trio will join Dick Allen and Dave Parker, who were elected last month [[link removed]] by the institution’s Classic Baseball Era Committee in this July’s induction ceremony. This large collection of popular players, many with New York–area ties from their playing days, is likely to be a boost to the Cooperstown, N.Y.–based Hall, which derives a meaningful portion of its annual revenue and visitation from the July induction weekend. A large turnout from Japan is expected.

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Conversation Starters Ohio State running back Quinshon Judkins scored three touchdowns against Notre Dame in the national championship game Monday night. He has an NIL (name, image, and likeness) deal that donates $1,000 to the Alabama Kidney Foundation [[link removed]] for every touchdown he scores. Mets owners Steve and Alex Cohen are donating more than $1 million [[link removed]] to relief efforts for the wildfires in Los Angeles. Check out [[link removed]] the scenes from snowy Philadelphia after Saquon Barkley scored a 78-yard touchdown to help propel the Eagles into the NFC championship game. Editors’ Picks Naomi Girma Set to Be First $1 Million Transfer in Women’s Soccer [[link removed]]by Margaret Fleming [[link removed]]Chelsea is closing in on the two-time NWSL Defender of the Year. Four Men Indicted in Ohio Burglaries; Burrow Link Appears Possible [[link removed]]by Margaret Fleming [[link removed]]An Ohio grand jury indicted the group Tuesday. Unrivaled Debuts With Modest Ratings on TNT [[link removed]]by Margaret Fleming [[link removed]]Opening night on TNT peaked at 364,000 viewers. Question of the Day

Do you think Netflix is taking the right approach to sports programming?

YES [[link removed]] NO [[link removed]]

Tuesday’s result: 84% of respondents said they enjoyed the first iteration of the expanded College Football Playoff.

Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Events [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Podcast [[link removed]] Written by Eric Fisher [[link removed]], Colin Salao [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Or Moyal [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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