Netflix to launch ad-supported subscription plan

Netflix is launching a new ad-supported tier called Basic with Ads in the US, the UK and a few other countries, states a recent announcement by the popular streaming platform. The Basic with Ads plan will come with a cost of $6.99 per month and will be officially launched on November 3 at 9 am PT.

To compare, the current pricing of Netflix's plans are as follows: Basic for $7.99/month, Standard for $9.99/month, and Premium for $11.99/month. The ad-supported plan, when launched,  will be a cheaper alternative to these existing plans.

The ad-supported Basic with Ads subscription plan will be launched in a total of 12 countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Spain, the UK and the US. It is currently unconfirmed when this plan will be made available in Bangladesh, India or other South Asian countries.

According to Netflix, the Basic with Ads plan will not affect the plans and subscription options the platform currently provides. Users will still be able to access and avail of the regular Basic, Standard and Premium plans. 

Netflix has also stated that due to licensing restrictions, some movies and TV shows will not be available in the Basic with Ads plan. Users will also not have the option to download movies and shows with this plan, and the video quality will be 720p/HD at maximum. 

As for the number of ads, Netflix has specified that Basic with Ads plan users can expect an average of 4 to 5 minutes of ads per hour. Ads will be 15 to 30 seconds long, which will be played before and during the shows and movies. Like current plans, this plan can be changed or canceled any time.