Netflix Carries Outsize Debt to Fund Original Content

Netflix is carrying twice as much debt, relative to its reported profits, as other major media companies, according to credit ratings agency Moody’s. The figures highlight the financial risk the streaming service is taking as it spends tons of money to create original films and TV shows.

Netflix has been borrowing money because it is spending more than it is generating from its business. This year, for instance, Netflix expects to burn through between $2 billion and $2.5 billion in cash and doesn’t expect to generate cash for “many years.”