Netflix reports slowing subscriber growth; shares slide

Netflix shares slid on Tuesday after the US streaming television titan reported that subscriber growth slowed in the recently ended quarter after booming in the early days of the pandemic.

While Netflix added 28.1 million paying subscribers so far this year, only 2.2 million of them came in the third quarter, the company said in an earnings release letter. 

"We think this is primarily due to our record first-half results and the pull-forward effect," Netflix said in the letter.

The streaming television giant, now facing an array of competitors, reported it has slightly more than 195 million subscribers.

Growth was strongest in the Asia-Pacific region, according to the earnings figures.

"We’re pleased with the progress we’re making in this region and, in particular, that we’ve achieved double-digit penetration of broadband homes in both South Korea and Japan," Netflix said.

"While this is encouraging, we still have much work to do and we're working hard to replicate this success in India and other countries."

The streaming television service expected to add 6 million new subscribers during the current quarter, bringing the total number of members added for this year to a record-setting 34 million.

Netflix reported a net income of $790 million on revenue of $6.4 billion, handily topping the same period last year.

Netflix shares were down 4.8 per cent in after-market trades that following release of the earnings figures.