Here's the Most Detailed Breakdown of Netflix's Subscriber Base Ever

In October, Netflix (NFLX +0.13%) told shareholders that it plans to revamp its financial reporting beginning with its fourth-quarter earnings report next month. The video-streaming pioneer will start including more granular details around a greater number of operating segments. Netflix has historically only broken out its results between the U.S. and international segments.

Ahead of that change, Netflix has now provided the most detailed breakdown of its subscriber base ever.

Image source: Netflix.

Two segments become four

Under the new reporting structure, Netflix will have four overarching geographical segments: United States and Canada (UCAN); Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA); Latin America (LATAM); and Asia-Pacific (APAC). In a regulatory filing with the SEC, Netflix provided nearly three years of data regarding each region, including never-before-seen insight into varying levels of monetization.

"In light of the Company's growing number of memberships and revenue from outside the United States, this regional reporting is consistent with how the Company reviews and manages its membership and revenue trends," Netflix said.

Here are pertinent details for each segment as of the end of the third quarter, excluding the legacy DVD business.

Data source: SEC filings.

As one might expect, monetization in the core U.S. market is much stronger than emerging markets. The tech company has been testing new plan structures in India over the past six months, for instance, in an effort to find the right mix of price, features, and availability.

In absolute figures, EMEA enjoyed the highest paid membership growth last quarter at 3.1 million, followed by 1.5 million net member additions in both APAC and LATAM. The mature UCAN segment added just 613,000 members in the third quarter, following its widely publicized loss of U.S. members in the second quarter that rattled investors. 

Data source: SEC filings. Chart by author.

EMEA has been rapidly growing paid members, closing the gap with UCAN and demonstrating its potential to perhaps one day eclipse that segment. Cross referencing Netflix's prior disclosures, investors can also deduce that the company has around 6.5 million subscribers in Canada.

Average monthly revenue per membership has been steadily climbing across the board, thanks to the periodic price increases that Netflix has been able to squeeze out of members. The most recent price hike was implemented earlier this year, bringing the price of Netflix's most popular Standard plan from $11 per month to $13 per month. Those price bumps aren't limited to the U.S. market.

With competition in the streaming wars intensifying, analysts are now questioning whether Netflix can keep boosting prices, particularly when competing services are offering far more aggressive pricing. Needham believes that Netflix should introduce ads into the mix in order to help subsidize lower prices.

Considering the growing importance of international markets to Netflix's future growth, investors will appreciate the newfound level of transparency.