Shares of Netflix hit a record high Wednesday, boosting the streaming giant's market value to $187.3 billion, topping Disney's $186.6 billion. Video streaming jumped 109 percent in March versus a year earlier, Nielsen reported, as millions of people are stuck at home, without live sports, to fight the COVID-19 coronavirus crisis. That has been a boon for Netflix and also newer rival Disney Plus, but Baby Yoda's parent company has seen its stock fall because Disney's other businesses — like theme parks and in-theater movies — have been crushed by the pandemic.
Disney's market value peaked at about $268 billion in November 2019, so Netflix's dominion is probably short-lived. "But unlike Disney and Roku, Netflix has no exposure at all to the advertising industry, stubbornly sticking to a subscription-only revenue model, despite pressure from some analysts in recent months to offer an ad-supported version of the service," Eric J. Savitz notes at Barron's. "With ad budgets in free fall and many media companies furloughing workers, cutting salaries, and struggling to maintain financial stability, Netflix is now reaping the rewards of its clear-cut no-ads strategy."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
May 31 editorial cartoonsCartoons Saturday's political cartoons include how much to pay for a pardon, medical advice from a brain worm, and a simple solution to the national debt.
-
5 costly cartoons about the national debtCartoons Political cartoonists take on the USA's financial hole, rare bipartisan agreement, and Donald Trump and Mike Johnson.
-
Green goddess salad recipeThe Week Recommends Avocado can be the creamy star of the show in this fresh, sharp salad
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutinySpeed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress codespeed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirementspeed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff displaySpeed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loomSpeed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panelsSpeed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of businessSpeed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pausesSpeed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect
