Netflix will introduce an ad-supported subscription tier in New Zealand from 2027 as part of its broader expansion plans, AdNews can reveal.
Global president of advertising Amy Reinhard, in an exclusive interview with AdNews, outlined what advertisers in ANZ can expect from Netflix's expanding ad business.
The company has revealed it will introduced its ad-supported subscription tier into 15 new markets including; New Zealand, Austria, Belgium, Colombia, Denmark, Indonesia, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, and Thailand.
Reinhard said New Zealand was not included in the 2022 launch, when it opened in Australia, because the initial focus was limited to 12 markets, which the company believed represented 85% of the global ad opportunity.
"We went out within 12 markets when we started this back in 2022, and those 12 markets represented 85% of what we thought the total opportunity was on a global basis," she said.
"We knew, in and of itself, those 12 markets were going to be a big enough operational lift before we took on more countries and kind of more complexity."
On the product side, Reinhard said a global rollout of interactive and modular ad formats was planned from 2027 following US trials, with a particular focus on video and podcast formats.
She explained Netflix was testing natively embedded, host-read, and display formats for its podcast offerings, testing what was most effective for both members and advertisers.
“In terms of brand awareness all the way down to through consideration and actual conversion, we think that our premium environment; lower ad loads, lower ad cap frequency, brand frequency - all of those contribute to a more meaningful member experience, and therefore a more impactful advertiser experience as well,” said Reinhard.
She confirmed some podcast titles would be exclusive to Netflix, while others would not, continuing the current operations of the American pilot.
Netflix will expand its programmatic capabilities to include Pause Ads and Live inventory using its Dynamic Ad Insertion technology, with Amazon DSP audience targeting available across all ad-supported countries from 1 June, and Yahoo DSP to follow.
The company stated it had been working with Dentsu, Horizon, Omnicom, and PMG on planning APIs and data clean rooms.
Despite announcing that Netflix will introduce AI agents, Reinhard said the Australian team will continue to negotiate directly with agencies and advertisers, rather than through AI or global hubs.
"Right now, it is very rudimentary. We are not yet to the place where we're handing over the negotiations. It's more about understanding what the needs are on the other side of the house," said Reinhard.
"Our local team in Australia is negotiating local deals on the ground in Australia with the local agencies and advertisers," said Reinhard.
Netflix is pushing hard on the full-funnel pitch.
In Australia, the platform reaches around four million active ad-supported viewers monthly, each having watched at least one minute of Netflix ads per month.
The company said 44% of members who see an ad on Netflix never saw it on broadcast TV or other streamers, with native Netflix campaigns driving almost 2x the TV norm on long-term brand building and 23% above competitor benchmarks on purchase intent.
A recent Netflix, Tinder and Bridgerton partnership generated over 20 million organic social views, exceeding APAC benchmarks for ad recall.
"We've done a few tests that have indicated that we have the ability absolutely to be a full funnel solution - from brand awareness all the way down through consideration and actual conversion," said Reinhard.
A spokesperson for Netflix ANZ, said Australia had adopted a measurement-first approach.
"Something we're super proud of in Australia amongst the ads team is a measurement-first approach that we're taking. We're super committed to transparency for clients and building deeper measurement solutions, both with our industry partners and with OzTAM as well," said the spokesperson.
When asked what the next five years will look like for Netflix Australia, Reinhard confirmed further investment in it’s ad offerings.
"I always have to remind myself that we just launched our tech stack a year ago," said Reinhard.
"When I think about a five-year horizon, there are so many opportunities in terms of personalised ad loads and personalised frequency caps, more brand partnerships that can get advertisers closer to content, and the world of agentic AI - very early days - but when you think about the opportunity there and all the success we've already seen in the programmatic marketplace in one short year."
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