Why Netflix Is Still Outrunning Rivals

Netflix’s quarterly earnings reports have lately lacked the drama that once made the updates a must-watch for investors and reporters. For the past eight quarters, the video streamer has routinely posted quarterly revenue growth averaging around 15%—hardly hypergrowth but a big improvement on the 2% to 4% growth rate it recorded between late 2022 and late 2023. Nowadays the results are so predictable that it would be easy to tune them out.

But Netflix is achieving something rarely seen in business. Since last fall, it has been growing at roughly double—or more—the rate of two of its biggest rivals in streaming, Walt Disney Co. and Warner Bros. Discovery, even though those companies have fewer subscribers and have been in the market for less time. As the biggest streaming firm, Netflix would be expected to grow more slowly than smaller rivals. (Other major rivals, such as Amazon Prime Video and YouTube, don’t disclose total revenue, making comparison impossible.)