Netflix to Stream Movies, TV Shows to Latin America

U.S. video giant Netflix, which has more than 23 million subscribers in the United States and Canada, announced plans Tuesday to expand to Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Los Gatos, California-based company said it would begin streaming television shows and movies over the Internet to 43 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean later this year.

The announcement sent Netflix shares to a record high on Wall Street.

Netflix shares gained 8.07 percent to close at $289.63 after hitting an all-time high of $291.23 during the day's trading.

Netflix did not say how much it plans to charge for the Latin American and Caribbean service.

In the United States and Canada, Netflix charges $7.99 a month for unlimited streaming of movies and television shows.

The company said members in Latin America will be able to access the service in Spanish, Portuguese or English.

Netflix chief executive Reed Hastings, speaking at the All Things Digital technology conference last month, said he was looking to grow the company internationally.

"We're national and trying to be a global Internet company," Hastings said. "Across the globe, there's about five billion people with mobile phones and essentially all of those five billion like video."