Strong interest in ad-based subscription plans supports Netflix's stock price

Netlix (NFLX.US) shares are gaining more than 4% early in today's Wall Street session following the company's announcement that it has broken through the 5 million active users' barriers with a new version of the platform that supports external advertising. The company introduced last November the option to choose a subscription priced at $7 per month with ads, as an alternative to ad-free plans that start at $10 per month. At this point, the service is available in seven countries.

The implementation of the service provider's ad-based program is primarily aimed at attracting more new customers and introducing a new revenue stream in the face of intensifying competition from HBO, Apple or Amazon. 

Source: xStation 5