Netflix reported increasing profits as subscriptions surged by almost 16 million at the streaming television service during lockdown.

“After record subscriber additions, Netflix is and will continue to be the media company least impacted by COVID-19,” said eMarketer forecasting analyst Eric Haggstrom.

“Their business is a near perfect fit to a population that is suddenly housebound.”

Netflix made a profit of $709 million on revenue of $5.8 billion in the first three months of this year.

While, the number of paid subscribers rose by 15.7 million from the previous quarter to total nearly 183 million, according to earnings figures.

Strict confinement rules are keeping billions of people at home in a bid to curtail the outbreak, effectively providing an enormous captive audience to entertainment giants competing in the streaming market.

“We’re acutely aware that we are fortunate to have a service that is even more meaningful to people confined at home, and which we can operate remotely with minimal disruption in the short to medium term,” Netflix executives said in a letter to investors.

Netflix expects viewing and membership growth to decline as coronavirus concerns abate and people can move about more freely.