Netflix has been playing the long game for several years now. When they first got into the game of original content, viewers didn’t really know what to make of it. Why would they waste so much money on content when they could just license out grade-A content from the major studios and networks? And in more recent years, Netflix has been dumping trucks full of money into their shows, going heavily into debt in order to expedite that approach even further.

The reason is they knew the day would come that the networks and studios would want to go direct-to-consumer with their content. Why let a third party profit from your content when you can do so directly? We are currently on the brink of the next stage of the streaming wars, and one major player set to emerge is Disney with their Disney+ streaming service. Of course, they will be getting all kinds of original content, but that won’t make up the entirety of their library.

In addition to the originals, they will also be bringing in their theatrical content, such as Star Wars and Marvel movies. With their service coming out later this year, the days where you can find such movies on Netflix are coming to an end. But how will this ultimately affect subscribers to Netflix?

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In a recent THR/Morning Consult survey (which was made up of 2,200 adults), 35% of subscribers ages 18 to 29 stated they would cancel their subscription to the service if Netflix lost all Marvel superhero movies, and 26% if all Disney content was removed. Ouch. Additionally, if the service loses The Office, Friends, plus Disney and Marvel content, a reported 49% of viewers said they’d drop. It’s also worth noting that in spite of Netflix’s efforts, three-quarters of the time spent watching Netflix is spent watching licensed content.

So does this mean Netflix is in trouble? After all, come later this fall, we will be seeing Disney+ open its shutters. Not necessarily.

“Most people have these subscriptions because they watch a wide variety of content and programming,” analyst Dan Rayburn stated. “The fact that they lose one show doesn’t typically force them to cancel their subscription.”

There’s also the fact that people tend to say one thing and do another. Rayburn pointed to the 27% of consumers who said they’d cancel their subscription over a price hike, but since this past quarter’s hike, Netflix has netted 1.74 million subscribers.

All this to say…we don’t really know.

Honestly, the content I watch on Netflix varies from finished feel-good TV shows to original Netflix content. I don’t usually watch blockbusters on it, and while a mass exodus of content sounds bad, I think people overestimate just how much they turn to those big properties.

But what do you think? Will you be canceling your Netflix subscription? Let us know down below!

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SOURCE: Morning Consult