Elon Musk weighed in on Netflix‘s subscriber loss in the first quarter of 2022 by claiming “the woke mind virus” is making the streaming platform “unwatchable.” Netflix announced Tuesday that it had lost 200,000 subscribers, marking the first time in 10 years the streamer has reported a decrease in subscribers. Following the news, Netflix’s stock crashed to a four-year low.
While Musk did not detail why Netflix shows are contributing to “the woke mind virus” that’s killing the streaming giant, he did agree with one follower who claimed that the “woke mind virus is the biggest threat to the civilization.” Musk replied, “Yes.”
Another follower wrote to Musk, “It’s not just Netflix. Movies in general, video games, TV, it’s all infested with current year trend woke garbage for fear of offending a green haired freak next to the ban button. Nothing original anymore at all, except for media coming out of places like Japan or Korea, ironically.” Musk responded, “True.”
Netflix’s co-CEO Reed Hastings blamed the subscriber loss on “great competition” (alluding to the rise of rival streaming platforms such as Disney+ and HBO Max) and password sharing. The streaming giant estimates that more than 100 million households are streaming the service for free by using a shared password.
“Account sharing as a percentage of our paying membership hasn’t changed much over the years, but, coupled with [the slowing pace of broadband and connected TV adoption] means it’s harder to grow membership in many markets — an issue that was obscured by our COVID growth,” Netflix wrote in a letter to shareholders, adding that it is now focused on “how best to monetize sharing” and calling it “a big opportunity as these households are already watching Netflix and enjoying our service.”
While Musk took the opportunity to troll Netflix for its subscriber loss, he actually has a working relationship with the streamer. The Netflix documentary series “Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space” centers on Musk’s SpaceX Inspiration4 mission, while the documentary “Return to Space” is all about Musk’s aerospace company SpaceX.
The woke mind virus is making Netflix unwatchable
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 20, 2022
Yes
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 20, 2022
True
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 20, 2022
