American streaming giantNetflixAfter trading on Tuesday, the company released its third-quarter results, which showed that its profit and the number of new users exceeded market expectations.

According to the results, Netflix earned $3.19 per share in the third quarter, with market expectations of $2.56; revenue of $7.48 billion and market expectations of $7.48 billion.

The company said that the number of paid households worldwide increased by 4.4 million in the third quarter, with a market expectation of 3.84 million; it is expected to increase by 8.5 million users in the fourth quarter, and the market is expected to increase by 8.32 million. At present, the streaming service platform has 213.6 million subscribers.

Netflix also praised the global hit TV series Squid Games this season. Netflix said the South Korean dystopian drama had become its highest-grossing TV series of all time, with 142 million households around the world watching it in the first four weeks of its broadcast.

It was previously reported that squid created nearly $900m in "impact value" for Netflix, which is the main reason for the expected turnaround by the end of the year.

Netflix also announced the use of new metrics to report audience data. The company will start reporting the number of hours viewers watch, rather than the number of accounts.

Netflix also updated investors on its foray into gaming. The company said it had begun testing its games in specific countries, but "the plan is still in its early stages." These games will be part of the Netflix subscription, excluding advertising or in-app purchases.

Netflix shares rose 2 per cent in after-hours trading after the earnings announcement. The stock closed up 0.16% at $639 on Tuesday and is up 17% so far this year.