Netflix subscribers in India to get 30-day free upgrade to higher-tier plan

The lockdown has definitely increased the load on streaming services and Netflix, is doing its part to capitalize on the trend. The company has said that it will offer a 1-tier upgrade to new customers for a period of one month. So, if you sign up for a new Netflix account and choose the Basic tier, you will get one month of Standard services and if you sign up for the Standard tier, then you will get the Premium service package. This is great for those who are looking to start binge-watching fantasy shows, or science fiction movies or even cash in on the superhero craze.

Currently, Netflix offers four subscription tiers; Basic for Rs 499 which allows users to stream content in standard definition to one device only, in addition to allowing download of content also on any one device. Then there is the Standard plan for Rs 649/month which allows for simultaneous streaming of full HD content to two screens. The third plan is the Premium plan which costs Rs 799/month and allows streaming of 4K HDR content on four screens simultaneously. The last plan on offer is the mobile plan which costs Rs 199/month but only allows streaming of standard definition content to either a smartphone or a tablet only. The new offer announced only applies to users who sign up for the basic or premium plans. A Netflix spokesperson told NDTV Gadgets “We're looking at different marketing promotions in India to attract new members and give them a great Netflix experience.”

Once the 30-day upgrade period ends, users will then be prompted to choose to stay on the higher tier plan or downgrade to the original plan that they had signed up for and will be charged accordingly. So let’s say you sign up for the Basic plan, you will still be charged for it in the first month, but you will get all the features of the Standard plan. Similarly, if you sign up for the Standard Plan, you will still be charged Rs 649 for the first month, but you will have all the features of the Premium plan for that month.

It is unfortunate that the offer is only available to new customers. Existing users on a lower-tier Netflix plan could have also benefitted from experiencing the higher tier plans for a month, possibly also leading to some conversions for the streaming platform.