Past Streaming: Netflix’s Quiet Strikes Into Gaming and Live Experiences

Key Points

• Netflix is extending past streaming into gaming, broadcasting dwell sports activities, and real-world venues.

• Execution dangers are important.

• The initiatives received’t drive income at present, however present priceless long-term optionality.

• 10 stocks we like better than Netflix ›

Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) has constructed its empire on streaming video content material, however the firm is not content material to cease there. While buyers deal with its subscriber progress and advert income, Netflix is quietly laying the groundwork for brand spanking new frontiers: gaming, immersive real-world venues, and dwell sports activities and different occasions.

These initiatives could not transfer the needle at present, however they reveal Netflix’s ambitions to be greater than only a content material platform. The large query for buyers: Are these facet bets a distraction from Netflix’s core, or may they evolve into significant progress engines?

Where to take a position $1,000 proper now? Our analyst crew simply revealed what they consider are the 10 finest shares to purchase proper now, whenever you be part of Stock Advisor. See the stocks »

1. A push into gaming

Netflix’s interactive experiments, reminiscent of Bandersnatch, which allowed viewers to choose the path of the story, are fading away. Instead, the corporate is constructing an precise gaming enterprise throughout 4 classes: celebration video games, narrative titles, kids’s video games, and mainstream hits.

Recent steps present Netflix is critical. It licensed blockbuster titles like Grand Theft Auto V for cell, is growing authentic tasks reminiscent of Thronglets — during which “you manage an ever-growing population of the little yellow guys” — and is testing cloud-based gaming on sensible TVs, the place most Netflix viewing already occurs. Phones function controllers, reducing friction for customers.

But execution stays uneven. Engagement continues to be restricted, with solely a small fraction of subscribers repeatedly taking part in video games. A latest studio closure and management adjustments underscore the challenges of scaling.

For buyers, the upside is evident. Gaming may strengthen engagement and open new methods to make money from online users. The danger is equally apparent. Games are costly, and Netflix hasn’t but confirmed it could possibly compete in a crowded business.

2. Netflix House: Bringing IP into the actual world

Later this yr, Netflix plans to open its first Netflix House places in Philadelphia and Dallas. These venues will function themed eating, merchandise, digital actuality actions, and interactive experiences tied to hit franchises like Stranger Things and Squid Game.

This method borrows from Disney‘s playbook, turning intellectual property into real-world touchpoints. If profitable, Netflix House may deepen fan engagement and add incremental income past subscriptions.

While nonetheless area of interest, it demonstrates Netflix’s broader aim: stretching its content material into a number of codecs to strengthen loyalty and model stickiness.

3. Live occasions and sports activities

Netflix as soon as dismissed dwell programming, however that stance has shifted.

The firm just lately signed a three-year cope with the NFL to stream Christmas Day video games by means of 2027. It additionally dedicated $5 billion over 10 years for unique streaming rights to WWE’s Monday Night Raw. And Netflix locked in unique rights to the 2027 and 2031 FIFA Women’s World Cups within the U.S. and Canada.

On the leisure facet, Netflix can also be leaning into selection. This yr, it launched Everybody’s Live with John Mulaney, a weekly dwell speak present airing each Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET. Add in one-off comedy specials and fan occasions, and the message is evident: Netflix is now not a pure on-demand service.

Live programming presents two benefits: it attracts advertisers, and it helps scale back churn by giving subscribers causes to tune in at particular instances. The problem, nonetheless, lies in execution. Rights are costly, and Netflix should show it could possibly translate these strikes into sustainable earnings in an area lengthy dominated by conventional broadcasters.

The greater image

Gaming, immersive venues, and dwell sports activities do not transfer the monetary needle but. Netflix nonetheless generates the majority of its revenue from streaming subscriptions and is barely starting to monetize its ad-supported tier, the place customers pay much less and see advertisements.

But these initiatives serve two essential functions:

1. Reduce reliance on exhibits and movies.
2. Add future income streams.

What does it imply for buyers?

For buyers, the hot button is persistence. Netflix is planting seeds, not harvesting profits. Some tasks could fail, however even one breakout success may increase its long-term progress runway.

Netflix’s quiet strikes past streaming present an organization unwilling to face nonetheless. Gaming, dwell occasions, and real-world venues all carry execution dangers, however in addition they spotlight Netflix’s ambition to evolve right into a broader leisure platform.

These bets do not change the funding thesis at present, however they offer Netflix long-term optionality. It’s a inventory that growth investors ought to monitor carefully.

Should you make investments $1,000 in Netflix proper now?

Before you purchase inventory in Netflix, think about this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst crew simply recognized what they consider are the 10 best stocks for buyers to purchase now… and Netflix wasn’t certainly one of them. The 10 shares that made the minimize may produce monster returns within the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this record on December 17, 2004… when you invested $1,000 on the time of our advice, you’d have $621,976!* Or when Nvidia made this record on April 15, 2005… when you invested $1,000 on the time of our advice, you’d have $1,150,085!*

Now, it’s value noting Stock Advisor’s whole common return is 1,058% — a market-crushing outperformance in comparison with 191% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the most recent prime 10 record, obtainable whenever you be part of Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of September 29, 2025

Lawrence Nga has no place in any of the shares talked about. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Netflix and Walt Disney. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the writer and don’t essentially replicate these of Nasdaq, Inc.