Things are looking up for Netflix this quarter. The streamer added 2.41 million subscribers, bringing the total to 223.09 million. Netflix expected a net gain of 1 million subs in the third quarter, so today's results far exceed its own expectations and analysts' expectations. The company revealed earnings of $7.93 billion in Q3 2022; analysts forecasted $7.85 billion.

This will be Netflix's first increase in a while, particularly in its U.S. and Canada subscriber base. It announced a spike at 104,000 subscribers in the region, bringing the new total to 73.4 million. The last time Netflix experienced subscriber growth in the U.S. and Canada was in Q4 2021.

The company expects 4.5 million paid net adds in Q4 2022.

Netflix has had two pretty terrible quarters in the last couple of months, having lost a total of 1.2 million global subscribers. A good chunk of layoffs have also happened, including the latest round with animation department cuts. Nevertheless, with the introduction of its ad-supported tier, set to launch on the site in November, the company may finally have opened itself up to new customers who are searching for an affordable option for streaming.

"The response from advertisers so far has been very positive, and we believe more choice, particularly for more price-sensitive customers, will translate into meaningful incremental revenue and operating profit over time. That said, it's still very early days, and since we're keeping our existing plans ad-free, it'll take us time to build out our membership base and the associated ad revenue," Netflix said.

The video-streaming service last week said the plan called Basic with Ads will cost $6.99 a month and will feature four to five minutes of ads an hour for TV shows and movies. The product will debut one month before the launch of competitor Disney+, which said its ad-supported tier will cost $7.99 a month.

Netflix cuts price with launch of its $7/month ad-supported plan early next month

Today, investors will also hear how the company plans to monetize password sharing on the platform. It said that, starting in early 2023, it will charge account members a fee who want to create "subaccounts" for account borrowers. This "extra members" feature was first tested in Chile, Costa Rica and Peru.

Netflix has rolled out a profile transfer feature to assist account members when the transition to their own separate accounts without losing personalized recommendations, viewing history, and other custom settings.

Netflix launches new 'Profile Transfer' feature to help monetize account sharing

The company also announced that the one-year anniversary of its gaming launch is approaching. Netflix continues to invest in mobile gaming, despite the report less than 1% of its subscriber base plays games. Last month, Netflix announced that game handles would be available for subscribers interested in playing its exclusive games. Additionally, the streamer is establishing an internal games studio in Finland.

In breaking news, Netflix is also launching a new studio in California and expanding into cloud gaming.

Netflix to expand into cloud gaming, opens new studio in Southern California

Netflix continues to remain focused on content, investing in big-budget films such as the anticipated “Knives Out” sequel, “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,” which will have a limited debut in theaters during Thanksgiving weekend before its streaming release on December 23.

Netflix earned only three Primetime Emmys this year, but its drama series about Jeffrey Dahmer has garnered 824.2 million viewing hours over its controversy. The company is proud to declare that the series is on the list of most-watched for this quarter along with "Stranger Things" season 4.