Netflix: Cheap advertising subscription not available on Apple TV

To counteract the shrinking subscription numbers, Netflix has now added a low-cost subscription model with advertising to its range. However, not everyone supports this step. Until now, owners of an Apple TV have had to do without ad-financed access to the streaming service’s extensive library. What is the reason for this?

Favorable Netflix with advertising financing

Since November 1, 2022, Netflix has offered a low-cost subscription that costs users €4.99 per month. Compared to the previously applicable basic rate for 7.99 euros per month, this is definitely a significant savings for users. Apart from the advertising, there are hardly any differences between the new advertising subscription and the basic version. You can stream in 720p resolution and on a maximum of two devices at the same time. To ensure that the new model is profitable for the streaming provider despite lower subscription costs, it relies on advertising funding. However, there are some small but subtle differences in the advertising interruptions.

For example, it is not possible to download content in advance in order to watch it without an active Internet connection. Users use this, for example, to watch their favorite series on flights. The reason for this is that the ad-financed subscription requires an active Internet connection. The advertising is streamed and played via this connection. According to Netflix, the commercial breaks should last about 15 to 30 seconds. Extrapolated to an hour, users will be shown ads before and during the series or movie. This is reminiscent of YouTube’s approach.

New subscription not possible on Apple TV

How well the new subscription model will be received by users now remains to be seen. What is certain is that owners of an Apple TV cannot currently enjoy the discounted rate. However, this is not because Apple is opposing Netflix’s new financing method. Instead, Netflix itself seems to be the problem. The streaming service states in a support message that it is currently partly impossible to stream ad-supported Netflix via an Apple TV. This doesn’t seem to have anything to do with the age of the devices, as even the recently introduced Apple TV 4K is said to suffer from the problem.

Netflix does not specify the cause behind the problem. However, it can probably be assumed that the streaming service is still having problems adapting the app for the Apple TV accordingly to the new circumstances. The only solution at the moment is to switch to a more expensive rate like the Basic version for an extra 3 Euros. Whether that will please Netflix customers with Apple’s streaming box is clearly doubtful. It would certainly be more customer-friendly to put the ad-financed version on Apple TVs at a low price without ads for the time being.