Netflix Releases List of Its Most-Binged Shows
by EG
It's wise to take any of Netflix's claims of the popularity of its original content with a grain of salt. The streamer refuses to release any actual viewership numbers for any of its content, so we can't learn very much from the vague statements it makes about the audiences for its shows. Read on for more (obscure) details.
Netflix has released some year-end lists about the way people watched some of its content — but as usual, how many watched remains opaque.
In fact, the fine print in the streamer's release may be the most relevant. Netflix has released a few lists naming its most rewatched movies and the shows people binge-watched in huge chunks. Below each list, however, is this disclaimer: "Ranking on this list has no relation to overall viewing."
Which, on one hand, is not surprising. Netflix has never released any concrete viewership data, as its business model depends more on subscriber growth and retention than the audience for any given show or movie. It has also claimed that any third-party data, be it from Nielsen or any other measurement firm, doesn't tell the complete story.
On the other hand, the opaqueness also means that, for example, when Netflix says more than 50 percent of viewers of its rom-coms The Kissing Booth and To All the Boys I've Loved Before watched more than once, no one knows how big that audience is. Five thousand people? 500,000? 5 million? It's anyone's guess!
Get the list of most-binged shows at The Hollywood Reporter.
Do you believe that the shows on Netflix's list have a big audience? Let us know in the comments below.