Netflix simply did the unthinkable: It launched viewership numbers. After years of withholding data on what number of hours subscribers spent watching its reveals and flicks, on Tuesday the streaming large launched an enormous trove of information. It covers 18,000 titles, breaking all of them down by what number of hours viewers have watched of every in the course of the interval of January to June 2023. The winner, with 812 million hours seen? The Evening Agent.
This bodes effectively for The Evening Agent and possibly much less good for individuals drawn to Netflix’s extra esoteric fare. As a result of whereas the primary season of Intercourse/Life—a steamy, soapy present about hooking up with a scorching former lover—scored 126 million hours seen, the primary season of Intercourse Schooling—a heat, humorous present about youngsters studying about intimacy and bounds—landed simply south of 28 million. The streaming large was fast to level out that “success on Netflix is available in all sizes and shapes” and isn’t decided by this stat alone. Though, on a name saying the numbers co-CEO Ted Sarandos put it considerably otherwise: “That is the information we use to run the enterprise.”
Netflix, then, is having it each methods—saying that numbers assist it resolve what reveals to make, whereas additionally saying stats don’t imply every little thing. Two issues can at all times be true directly, but it surely’s laborious to think about Netflix, popping out of Sizzling Strike Summer time and going through a rising variety of rivals, not wanting to maintain pouring assets into positive issues.
To not say that extra of The Evening Agent is a foul factor. When you’re not one of many obvious thousands and thousands of people that’ve watched it, then you definitely’ve most likely heard somebody inform you, “Oh yeah, it’s … high-quality?” whereas copping to having watched a complete season in a weekend. It’s what my colleague Jason Parham likes to name “simply OK TV”—neither offensive, nor boundary-pushing, simply there.
This period of Simply OK additionally comes as Netflix captures the King of Actuality TV throne. Exhibits like Love Is Blind and Promoting Sundown have gotten cultural juggernauts, and the streamer reveals no signal of slowing down, particularly now that the Squid Sport spinoff, Squid Sport: The Problem, is getting main traction. (The present got here out after the time interval tracked for Netflix’s newest report, however its early viewer numbers have been fairly good.)
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