Cheaper Netflix subscription available from next month. What are the limitations

Those who want a lower-priced Netflix subscription only have to wait until next month, but it’s worth knowing that apart from ads there are other drawbacks to the new price plan.

Initially confirmed for 12 countries – Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Spain, the UK and the US, the ad-subsidized Netflix subscription will cost $6.99 per month.

Presumably, in a desire not to make the new pricing plan too popular a choice, eroding the service’s status as a premium content service, Netflix administrators have decided that the low-cost ad-supported experience will come with other rather stinging compromises to motivate users to choose standard subscriptions.

So those who choose ad-sponsored Netflix subscriptions will have to make do without the download option, useful for saving movies for offline viewing on the go where internet access is poor. So if you opt for such a subscription you’ll need to make sure that the WiFi access in your hotel room not only works, but also provides the bandwidth needed for streaming video at high resolution.

Another downside is that if you own a large diagonal TV, possibly 4K, you won’t be able to enjoy optimal picture clarity, as Netflix caps quality settings at 720p/HD resolution.

At launch, ads will be 15 to 30 seconds long for each clip inserted before and during shows and movies. Another compromise is limited access to Netflix’s catalog should be included, with certain TV productions and movies blocked due to licensing restrictions, which Netflix promises to work on.

The good news is that nothing changes for Netflix subscribers who aren’t interested in the new Basic with Ads option, with the other subscriptions, Basic, Standard and Premium remaining at their current rates and terms of use.