Exclusive: Mark Cuban Sees Half A Billion Subscribers Ahead For Netflix

It's been a good 12 months for Netflix, Inc NFLX bulls.

It was one year ago that the subscription based video-on-demand service reported Q2 numbers that missed top-line estimates and, more significantly, added "only" 1.7 million new subscribers. The Street didn't take that news well, as it opened the following morning down 12 percent.

Now, true believers willing to ride out the wave of bearish sentiment that followed have been rewarded for their patience. On Monday, Netflix reported Q2 sales of $2.79 billion, beating forecasts and also issuing strong guidance. But the new subscriptions number was the real kicker; 5.2 million new subs added crushed the consensus estimate of 3.2 million by more than 60 percent.

What should Netflix do next? Mark Cuban has an idea.

"Stay in startup mode," Cuban told Benzinga in an email. "They want to dominate video content. They can reach 500 [million] subs in the next 10 years."

See Also: Netflix Vs. Amazon: On-Demand Video Market Is Big Enough For Both

Doubling Down

In an exclusive with Benzinga last year after the "disappointing" Q2 subscriptions and top-line miss, the billionaire entrepreneur and noted Netflix investor Mark Cuban defended the company, comparing it to Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN and warning skittish shareholders not to get caught up in "quarter to quarter fluctuations."

A year later, Cuban's comments look pretty prescient.

Netflix shares traded 10.65 percent higher Tuesday morning, following a beat and a flood of positive response from sell-side analysts. With operational levers like advertising and licensing still waiting to to be pulled, the Netflix growth show may still be in its first season.

At time of publication, the stock traded at $179.24, up up 80 percent year-over-year.

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