iWorld
Netflix adds 2.2 million subs from APAC in Q3 2021
Mumbai: OTT Giant Netflix announced its results for Q3 2021. The company grew its revenues by 16 per cent to $7.5 billion year-on-year and added as many as 4.4 million paid subscribers globally bringing its total subscriber base to 214 million subscribers.
For the second consecutive quarter, the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region was the largest contributor to Netflix’s subscriber growth with 2.2 million subscribers coming from this region alone. The streaming giant added 1.8 million subscribers from the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) market.
The company forecasted 8.5 million subscriber additions for Q4 2021.
Netflix also reported that ‘Money Heist- Season five’ and ‘Sex Education- season three’ were two of its biggest returning shows of the quarter reaching 69 million and 55 million households, respectively. Korean drama ‘Squid Game’ became its “biggest TV show ever” by reaching 142-million-member households in its first four weeks of launch. The show has ranked #1 in Netflix’s top ten shows across 94 countries including the US.
The streaming giant said it will shift its metrics to ‘hours viewed’ for its titles rather than the ‘number of accounts that choose to watch them’ later this year.
“There is some difference in rankings but we think engagement, as measured by hours viewed, is a slightly better indicator of the overall success of our titles and member satisfaction,” it said on Wednesday. “We will start to release title metrics more regularly outside of our earnings report so our members and the industry can better measure success in the streaming world.”
Barring unforeseen events that result in large-scale production shutdowns the company anticipates a more normalised production slate for 2022 with even more originals releasing than 2021.
During Q3, Netflix announced its agreement to acquire the Roald Dahl Story Company pending regulatory approval and acquired video game developer Night School Studio.
Netflix also reported that when Facebook experienced a global outage for several hours on 4 October, the streaming platform saw a 14 per cent increase in engagement during that time period.
Gaming
Roblox appoints Sunil Rao as India managing director to drive growth
Former AWS leader to lead creator ecosystem, partnerships and local strategy
MUMBAI: Roblox has appointed Sunil Rao as managing director for India, as the company looks to deepen its footprint in one of its fastest-growing markets.
Rao, who will join in May, will serve as the senior-most representative for Roblox in India, leading local strategy, partnerships and day-to-day operations. His mandate includes strengthening the platform’s presence, supporting the creator ecosystem and aligning India’s market needs with global priorities.
A key focus area will be nurturing India’s growing community of developers and creators, enabling local studios to leverage Roblox’s tools for scaling and monetisation. Globally, the platform’s creator community earned over $1.5 billion in 2025, underlining the economic potential of user-generated content ecosystems.
“Roblox is at the forefront of enabling a new generation of creators and games. India’s scale, creativity, and entrepreneurial energy present a massive opportunity,” said Rao. “I’m excited to build a vibrant and inclusive ecosystem that empowers developers and creators across the country. Ensuring child safety and aligning closely with India’s regulatory framework will be among my top priorities.”
Welcoming the appointment, Roblox vice president international Zhen Fang said India represents a high-potential market for the company. “Sunil brings deep expertise in building operations across diverse markets, and his passion for community-centric platforms makes him the ideal leader to drive our next chapter of growth in the country.”
Rao brings over two decades of experience across technology platforms, venture capital and developer ecosystems. He was previously part of the leadership team at Amazon Web Services, where he led strategy and corporate business development across Asia-Pacific and Japan. He also served as a partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners, working closely with startups and founders.
Earlier in his career, Rao played a key role in building developer ecosystems at Symbian, Nokia and Google, contributing to the growth of major mobile and internet platforms.
With India’s large youth population and rapidly evolving digital landscape, Roblox’s latest leadership move signals a sharper focus on long-term growth, local relevance and creator-led innovation in the market.
