Ethiopia rollout talks with Ethio Telecom continue
Ethio Telecom confirmed on July 26, 2026 that it is in ongoing discussions with Netflix over the business model and market conditions needed to translate a local cache arrangement into a full commercial rollout in Ethiopia. Speaking during the state-owned operator's 2025/26 fiscal year performance report, CEO Frehiwot Tamiru said Netflix already places cache servers inside Ethio Telecom's network under Netflix's Open Connect programme, but that local caching has not produced full service for Ethiopian users. Frehiwot said bringing the servers into Ethiopia took years of negotiation, partly because Netflix initially questioned whether there were enough users to justify the investment, and that the main remaining obstacle is Netflix's current business model, which she said does not yet support full provision in Ethiopia, citing pricing and payment-system constraints. Ethio Telecom reported total international internet gateway capacity of 4.3 terabits per second, with local content-delivery network capacity rising 820 gigabits per second to 2,062 gigabits per second across five CDN partners.
MPA-led pushback against UK TV licence fee policing
The Motion Picture Association, which lists Netflix alongside Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount, Sony Pictures, Universal, Prime Video and MGM Studios among its members, has told the UK government's Charter Review that it opposes BBC proposals to make streaming platforms help enforce the £180 annual TV licence fee. According to comments reported by The Times and published by Cordbusters, the MPA said it would "caution against any suggestion that third parties such as broadcasters' VOD services and streaming providers play a role in the collection and enforcement of the licence fee," arguing the duty should remain with the BBC and TV Licensing and warning that shifting it to streamers "would likely incur new costs for business, with a downstream impact on viewers and their viewing experience." The BBC has floated broadening requirements so that any household subscribing to a streaming service would need a licence, with suggestions ranging from data-sharing to in-app pop-ups or blocking access until payment is confirmed, while figures cited by GB News show 94% of UK households use BBC services each month against fewer than 80% who pay the fee.
Kalshi sends cease-and-desist over Netflix documentary trailer
Prediction-market operator Kalshi sent Netflix a cease-and-desist letter in late July 2026 calling the trailer for its upcoming Instadoc documentary "Prediction Games" defamatory, according to reporting by The Hollywood Republic summarised by Benzinga. Kalshi's letter also alleged that a Netflix employee had "agreed not to feature the receipt" in the film. A Netflix spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter that the footage was real and not fabricated, saying it was filmed on July 17 during a watch event in Las Vegas and that the trader's screenshot was taken before a Nevada regulatory ruling. The film features Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour and Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan and was scheduled to premiere on Sunday. The dispute added to Kalshi's regulatory pressure, coming after the company sued Minnesota and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission over a state law criminalising its event contracts.
Enola Holmes 3 viewership drops after opening week
Netflix's Enola Holmes 3, the third installment of its young-adult detective franchise released on June 30, 2026 and starring Millie Bobby Brown alongside Henry Cavill, saw viewership fall in successive weeks, according to figures cited by Collider. The film drew 20 million views in its first week, dropped to 12 million in its second week and fell to 4.8 million in its third week, bringing total viewership to roughly 37 million views over three weeks. The movie, directed by Philip Barantini and written by Jack Thorne, holds a 66% Rotten Tomatoes score, compared with 91% and 93% "Certified Fresh" scores for the first two films. Collider noted that Netflix counts views over the first 91 days of release, a window under which four other 2026 titles — War Machine, The Rip, Apex and Thrash — have crossed the 100 million views threshold.
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