Netflix shares fall more than 35% after streamer loses over 200,000 subscribers

Reed Hastings, co-chief executive, said tackling account sharing is now a priority for the company. An estimated 100m households are using accounts that they do not pay for. Photograph: Chris Delmas/AFP/Getty Images

Shares of Netflix lost more than 35% of their value in New York on Wednesday, after the streaming giant announced it had lost more than 200,000 subscribers in the first three months of the year and said it and expects to lose 2 million more over the next quarter.

The sharp drop wiped $50bn off Netflix’s value and comes as subscribers rethink their commitment to streaming services that grew their numbers sharply during the homebound months of peak lockdown. Netflix had anticipated it would add 2.5 million customers in the first quarter.