Netflix maintain high-priced relationship with 'Friends'

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.