Netflix profit more than doubles, shares rise

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Netflix Inc's quarterly profit more than doubled, boosted by a $1 monthly increase in its most popular video streaming plan for new customers in the United States.

Netflix shares were up nearly 1 percent at $456.21 in after hours trading, after the company also said it expected average revenue per user to rise slowly as it wins over more subscribers at the new prices.

The company increased the price of its most popular video streaming plan by $1 per month to $9 for new customers in the United States in May ? the company's first price hike in its largest market in three years.

Netflix said it added 570,000 U.S. customers in the second quarter ended June 30. It added 1.12 million customers in international markets. (http://bit.ly/UnqT1D)

The company said it planned to expand into Germany, France, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, and Luxembourg in September, taking its international addressable market to more than 180 million broadband households ? double the current U.S. market.

Netflix has invested in original series such as "House of Cards" and the Emmy-nominated "Orange is the New Black", whose second season released last quarter, to square off competition from online video players Amazon.com Inc and Hulu.

The company's profit rose to $71 million, or $1.15 per share, from $29.5 million, or 49 cents per share, a year earlier.

Revenue rose to $1.34 billion from $1.07 billion, Netflix said in its quarterly letter to shareholders.

Analysts on average had expected $1.16 per share in profit on revenue of $1.34 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

(Reporting by Lisa Richwine and Lehar Maan; Editing by Joyjeet Das)