Netflix to offer video games on its platform from next year

The games will be displayed alongside the current content, similar to documentaries and stand-up comedy specials, and are likely not to cost extra, a source told ‘Bloomberg’.

Streaming giant Netflix is now planning to foray into the video gaming market. The streaming platform’s plan is to begin offering games on the platform by 2022 beyond its usual TV shows and films. For the same, Netflix has hired the former Electronic Arts head and Facebook executive, Mike Verdu, as its vice-president of Game Development.

The games will be displayed alongside the current content, similar to documentaries and stand-up comedy specials, and are likely not to cost extra, a source told ‘Bloomberg’.

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The source added that the gaming team would be built over the coming months and Netflix had “already started advertising for game-development related positions on its website”.

Verdu, who is said to report directly to Greg Peters, the Chief Operating Officer at Netflix, has prior experience as VP in charge of developers who brought games and other content for the Oculus virtual reality headsets at Facebook. He was also the former head of Electronic Arts Inc. which holds popular gaming franchises like the ‘Sims’, ‘Plants vs. Zombies’ and ‘Star Wars’.

Separately, Netflix also announced that it is launching two new services — Kids Recap Email and Kids Top 10 row — aimed at making the platform more children-friendly.

Netflix shares gained as much as 2.8% to $563.45 in pre-market trading on Thursday. The stock had been up 1.3% this year through Wednesday’s close.Though the company remains well ahead of streaming rivals such as Disney+ or HBO Max, it added only fewer subscribers than expected in its most recently reported quarter.

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