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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Gwilym Mumford

The Guide #59: Netflix has adverts now – how did it come to this?

For the first time, Netflix is introducing adverts – but not for all viewers, yet.
For the first time, Netflix is introducing adverts – but not for all viewers, yet. Photograph: Dado Ruvić/Reuters

Hell has frozen over. That month of Sundays has come to pass. A flock of winged pigs has just flown casually past your window. Yes, the unlikely has happened: Netflix has introduced adverts to its platform.

It’s worth remarking on how unlikely this development is. Netflix, after all, was the platform that would break those old ways of doing things. As the leader of the streaming revolution, it has always positioned itself in opposition to the broadcast model with its rigid schedules and lengthy commercial breaks. Netflix has always given you what you wanted, when you wanted it, with no interruptions. Until now, that is.

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