Most of Netflix's subscriber growth came from outside the United States, where the company has invested heavily in establishing itself as a global television service

Netflix on Monday reported that the number of subscribers climbed more than expected, topping 100 million worldwide and sending shares in the leading on-demand television service soaring.

Netflix shares leapt more than eight percent to $175.90 in after-market trades that followed release of earnings figures that showed the Silicon Valley-based company added 5.2 million subscribers in the recently ended quarter to raise the total to 103.95 million for its streaming .

Most of the growth came from outside the US, where Netflix has invested heavily in establishing itself as a global television service.

Netflix said profit was up 61 percent to $66 million. Revenue increased 32 percent to $2.78 billion from the same quarter last year.

"We underestimated the popularity of our strong slate of content which led to higher-than-expected acquisition across all major territories," Netflix said in a letter released along with the earnings figures.

© 2017 AFP