Subscribers Jump At 'TV Network' Netflix

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings hammered home Monday that the company believes it is squarely in the TV business, saying that increased competition for exclusive content is “a natural outcome of us becoming a network like other cable networks."

He also used the term “Internet television” to describe the company, which finished the January-March quarter with 23.4 million streaming subscribers in the U.S., following 1.7 net additions in the quarter. The company predicts it will end the year at close to 29 million streaming customers in the U.S., which would be equal to about 30% of homes that pay for TV service. Netflix is moving to acquire exclusive rights to TV shows that have run elsewhere -- such as AMC’s “Breaking Bad” -- while launching content it produces itself, such as “Lilyhammer,” which came online in the first quarter.