Netflix Q1 results: Unprecedented growth, 10.3 million subs, improving testing for cracked discs
We're not saying it's all good news for Netflix, but even someone with our limited financial knowledge can tell that this quote from CEO Reed Hastings in its Q1 results means things are going pretty well: "We added more net subscribers than in any previous quarter in our history and grew year-over-year GAAP EPS by 76 percent." We don't have to know what GAAP EPS is (earnings reported according to generally accepted accounting principals, and in our Wikipedia-based financial opinion we're concerned this may not truly reflect the earnings of the company until we can evaluate the operating cash flow per share - but this isn't that kind of blog) to recognize the company has a hit on its hands with Watch Instantly, even while its biggest competition is struggling. After busting through 10 million subscribers in February, the company is up to 10,310,000, adding 920,000 to its ranks in Q1 alone. Other news from the earnings call: Streaming only subscriptions are still being "considered" but not planned right now, the company is rolling out a new machine to test discs for scratches and cracks, and the company's biggest threat, just like we discussed on the podcast, is the spread of rental kiosks. You can check the reports for the rest of the details but if, like us, you're more interested in finding out when more HD and surround audio are coming to the streaming service, you'll be disappointed, because they're not in there.
[Image courtesy of TooMuchNick / WireImage, via Hacking Netflix]
