Paul Sakuma / AP
Netflix headquarters in Los Gatos, Calif.
Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2018 | 4:16 p.m.
SAN FRANCISCO — Netflix will still be there for fans of the old TV series "Friends," but maintaining the relationship will come at a steep price.
The New York Times reported that Netflix paid $100 million to keep showing "Friends" on its U.S. service through 2019. The newspaper says that's more than triple the $30 million a year Netflix had been paying for the long-running TV series about six 20-something friends in New York. The report cited two unidentified people with direct knowledge of Netflix's deal with the series' rights holder, AT&T.
Netflix tweeted that it will continue showing "Friends," but didn't disclose financial details.
Netflix's willingness to pay so much for a series that ended in 2004 is the latest sign of intensifying competition in video streaming.
