Netflix taps new revenue with online store for fan merchandise
Streaming market leader Netflix is paving the way for a major foray into the merchandising business with an online store for fan merchandise. While its major rival, Walt Disney, has been earning a lot of money for decades by selling and marketing products to fans of its comics, movies, and TV shows, Netflix has largely passed up this source of revenue until now. On Thursday, it launched its own online store.
So far, only a manageable selection of items is available there. For the premiere, Netflix is offering shirts, hoodies and other designer products related to the anime series "Eden" and "Yasuke." It is a "boutique" concept, Netflix manager Josh Simon explained to the New York Times. Simon joined Netflix in March 2020 from Nike to build the fan merchandise business. More items are to be added to the store in the coming days, including pillows and boxer shorts with the Netflix logo and motifs from the "Lupin" series.
Given the popularity of series like "Tiger King" and "Stranger Things," merchandising has long been seen by many analysts as the logical next step for the company. The Internet is already teeming with homemade fan articles. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings had already expressed interest in this business area in recent years, as well as in further projects such as theme parks - but rather for long-term planning. (SDA)
