Netflix latest quarterly results disappoint

Netflix is growing more slowly than predicted, according to latest figures.

The firm's Q1 results show it fell 250,000 viewers short of Wall Street predictions. In the first three months of the year, the streaming service added 3.53m customers outside America, and 1.42m inside the US. While those figures might sound impressive, they were actually lower than the predicted stats of 3.68m and 1.5m respectively.

This contrasts with the previous quarter, in which it added 7m subscribers.

However, it's not exactly doom and gloom for the service. It has shown incredible growth in the last couple of years and is expected to reach 100m subscribers this weekend.

"We remain incredibly excited about the opportunity in front of us to build a truly global and durable internet TV business," the firm wrote in its letter to shareholders.

MORE: Amazon Prime Video vs Netflix - which is better?

The firm also revealed it is exploring the opportunity of releasing its original films in cinemas at the same time as it streams them to the home (though it will let subscribers have the final say on the matter).

"Since our members are funding these films, they should be the first to see them," Netflix wrote. "But we are also open to supporting the large theatre chains, such as AMC and Regal in the US, if they want to offer our films (such as our upcoming Will Smith film Bright ), in theatres simultaneous to Netflix. Let consumers choose."

Netflix's original film output has performed well, both commercially and critically. It picked up an Oscar for its documentary The White Helmets, while its Adam Sandler films have been streamed more than 500m times since it commissioned The Ridiculous Six. However, more highbrow fare like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny, have performed less well.

MORE: These are the best TVs to watch Netflix on, according to Netflix