Viewership figures for 99 per cent of its library unveiled by Netflix

Netflix has taken a significant step toward transparency by revealing viewership data for 99% of its extensive catalogue, consisting of over 18,000 titles available globally. In its inaugural report titled “What We Watched,” Netflix shared viewing statistics from January to June 2023, marking the beginning of a planned semi-annual tradition to provide a comprehensive view of viewership, moving beyond highlighting only top-performing content.

The company expressed the belief that this transparency initiative, coupled with its weekly Top 10 and Most Popular lists, will offer creators and industry stakeholders deeper insights into audience preferences. Netflix acknowledged that 60% of the titles in the first-half study had previously appeared in the Top 10 at some point, indicating a connection between top-performing content and overall viewership data.

This move toward transparency addresses longstanding concerns from Hollywood guilds, including the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild?American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), regarding the lack of clarity in streaming data. The streaming giant’s commitment to sharing more information began with the publication of weekly Top 10 lists in 2021 and participation in Nielsen’s weekly snapshots.

Co-CEO Ted Sarandos highlighted that enhanced transparency is part of the ongoing effort to align with industry standards as streaming becomes more mainstream, and it is not solely motivated by Netflix’s venture into advertising. The release of comprehensive viewing data aims to provide verified numbers to industry stakeholders, similar to third-party verification by entities like Nielsen.

The new report includes any title, whether original or licensed, watched for at least 50,000 hours in the six-month period, offering a broader scope while still reflecting familiar trends seen in the weekly charts. The methodology change in the new report expresses data in terms of hours viewed, deviating from Netflix’s internal metric of “views,” aligning with the latest contracts for streaming transparency and performance bonuses adopted by WGA and SAG-AFTRA.

The top-ranking title in the new report is “The Night Agent,” accumulating an impressive 812.1 million hours of viewing, showcasing a diverse range of content that resonated with audiences.