Netflix cancellations skyrocketed after co-founder Harris backed: report

According to a report, Netflix account deletions increased in the days after co-founder and chairman Reed Hastings endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris and donated millions to her presidential campaign.

Although the streaming platform typically has the lowest churn — or abandonment — rate in the industry, its rate in the U.S. nearly tripled following Hastings' support, according to researcher Antenna.

According to a Bloomberg report, large numbers of customers in the US canceled their Netflix subscriptions in July at a rate of 2.8% – more than any other month since February.

Subscribers likely canceled their accounts en masse because the streaming giant discontinued its Basic plan — its lowest-priced, ad-free option — that same month.

Still, cancellations rose unusually sharply in the five days after Hastings' approval, even considering the increase in July, the report said.

“Congratulations to Kamala Harris — now it’s time to win,” Hastings wrote in a post on X on July 22, after Harris officially became the Democratic nominee.

Then the Information reported that Hastings donated $7 million to an anti-Donald Trump Republican PAC in support of Harris.

Trump supporters criticized the donation and called for a boycott on social media. Some online users falsely claimed that Netflix itself donated the millions to Harris.

Frustrated subscribers posted photos of their canceled accounts online with the hashtag #CancelNetflix.

Three days after the donation was made public — July 26 — was Netflix's worst cancellation day this year, according to Bloomberg.

Netflix did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

It's unclear what, if any, significant long-term impact the cancellations will have on Netflix's business.

But the short-lived Netflix boycott is reminiscent of social media campaigns against companies with DEI initiatives.

Conservative activist Robby Starbuck has pressured a number of companies to abandon their DEI practices by calling on his hundreds of thousands of followers to boycott the companies.

His targets included companies that rely on a significant consumer base in red states, including Ford, Harley-Davidson, John Deere and Tractor Supply.

Following the murder of George Floyd and the subsequent Black Lives Matter movement in 2020, many companies – including those in the entertainment industry – struggled to implement diversity initiatives.

Netflix made good on its 2020 promise to transfer 2% of its cash to Black-owned banks.

In June 2020, Hastings and his wife Patty Quillin donated $120 million to historically black colleges and universities.

However, some companies in the industry faced backlash when their initiatives spilled over into politics. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis clashed with Disney after the company criticized a law that bans discussion of gender identity in classrooms.

Netflix's skyrocketing churn rate is just the latest political accident to befall an entertainment company.

Hastings — who co-founded Netflix in 1997 and stepped down as CEO in 2023 — has donated billions to charity over the years. He has also long donated to Democratic and some Republican candidates and PACs.

As one of the biggest — and one of the first — Democratic donors to call on President Biden to withdraw from the race in July, he has been outspoken about this year's upcoming election.

“Biden must resign so that an energetic Democratic leader can defeat Trump and ensure our security and prosperity,” he then told The New York Times via email.