Copyright Warner Brothers
Multiple outlets are now reporting that Friends could be leaving Netflix in 2019. The series arrived on Netflix in the US back in 2015 and is supposedly leaving Netflix in 2019 but is it actually going to happen? Let’s take a look.
Updated: 12/03/2018
The report comes from Collider who’s reporting that: “Netflix May Lose ‘Friends’ in 2019”. Unfortunately, their article is pure speculation at this point. The article is based on a broad statement made by an analyst who said some of the big syndicated content will leave Netflix in due course. That’s a valid concern and one that’s proved correct but him naming Friends was just an example in this case. The example is a good one because Warner Brothers are in fact, creating a streaming service due out next year.
So is it leaving?
We’ve seen no evidence of Friends leaving Netflix. Not yet, at least. If you are to access and look at the details for the show you’ll see that there is no scheduled leave date as of yet. If a show is to leave Netflix, this is updated within a month of the said show leaving. While many outlets are reporting that the show will leave on January 1st just to reiterate we have seen no evidence that this is the case but watch this space.
Of course, things do come and go from the service but it’s likely that Netflix will spend a lot of money to keep Friends streaming. As we said above, Netflix first picked up all 10 seasons of Friends to stream back on January 1st, 2015. Should Netflix’s license of the show expire we’ll likely know come December 2018 when we discover what’s leaving Netflix in January 2019. That’s because titles are often licensed for a full year at a time making January 1st, the 4th year anniversary of the show being on Netflix.
Is Warner Brothers making a streaming service?
Yes, Warner Brothers have at least two streaming services likely upcoming. DC Universe is pegged for release next year as well as a full-fledged Warner Brothers streaming service that’s not due out until the end of 2019. There’s been no announcement of what content is coming to Warner Brothers streaming service with the exception of HBO content.
Some have also reported on the fact that Netflix may lose DC shows too which makes up a large portion of Netflix’s superhero content including the likes of Supergirl, Arrow, The Flash and more.
What about the United Kingdom?
Netflix UK only got Friends added to the service during 2018. The series had been longrunning on Comedy Central to who Netflix now shares the license for. The show was recently reported to be the number one streaming show in the United Kingdom. There’s no chance it’ll leave Netflix UK for the foreseeable future.
Add to this that even more Netflix regions have recently picked up Friends with Netflix India picking it up this week.
This may all turn out to be correct and Netflix does lose Friends on January 1st, 2019 but at this early stage, it’s safe to assume it’s pure speculation.
There you have it, we’ll update you should anything change but for the moment, take the news of Friends leaving Netflix with a pinch of salt.
