Netflix’s seat on the streaming throne looks in jeopardy as it faces its first loss of subscribers in almost a decade.

Shares of Netflix lost more than 35% of their value in New York on Wednesday morning.

The number of households using the streaming service fell by 200,000 in the first three months of the year.

Shareholders were also warned of even greater max exodus in Q2 of 2022 with an estimated 2,000,000 expected to dip by July.

“Our revenue growth has slowed considerably,” the firm told shareholders on Tuesday after publishing its first quarter results.

“Our relatively high household penetration – when including the large number of households sharing accounts – combined with competition, is creating revenue growth headwinds.”

Dominic Sunnebo, an expert at research firm Kantar, warned the plan could backfire.

“If the schemes to counter password sharing move too fast and too aggressively, it also risks alienating a potential future audience – many who password-share beyond the household are not actually aware they’re breaking the terms of their subscription.”

The doom and gloom isn’t limited to Netflix however with analysts warning that any slowdown in the rate at which consumers – gearing up for the current cost of living crisis – subscribe to services could leak into the wider industry hitting companies like HelloFresh and Spotify.

Netflix said it would also attempt to jump-start growth by improving the “quality of our programming” and consider introducing a lower-price, advertiser-supported subscription option.