Seven years later, Netflix's binge-watching phenomenon continues to dominate Indian viewing habits and reshape entertainment consumption patterns.

Content Is King

The US movie theatres saw the lowest attendance in 2017 in 23 years, which is a surprising fact considering the surge in the global box office. This fact comes in view of the increasing popularity of video streaming services like Netflix, which has been able to provide better content than most of the present day films and has resulted in mass binge-watching of their content.

Growth Of Netflix  

Netflix is a digital service company which provides online streaming of a library of films and television programs. It started as a door to door DVD shipment of shows in 1997, but only saw the actual growth in 2007 when it began streaming its content online. Today, after 20 years of its founding, it’s the biggest online digital service with over 125 million subscribers and an estimated value of over $130 billion. Netflix started as a service, streaming shows and films which it purchased from local companies. Breaking Bad became a very popular TV series once it started streaming on Netflix, with its last season hitting 10.3 million viewers on the first day.

Their USP, Binge-Watching 

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As of 2017, more than 100 million Netflix subscribers watched 1 billion hours of content per week. This led to the fall in a number of conventional TV viewers and attendance in movie theatres. The biggest reason why people are watching Netflix so obsessively is due to a series’ entire season being binge-watched. Binge watching is a practice of watching multiple episodes of a TV programme in rapid succession. Several digital services like Amazon Prime, HBO Go and CBS release one episode every week; but in case of Netflix, an entire season is released at once hence allowing us to binge watch the whole season in a go. Binge is the bread and butter of the company. It believes that by binge-watching, people can complete a season within a few days instead of waiting for months to complete, which not only keeps the viewers attached to the show but also lets them start another show. It is reported that the entire season of Stranger Things 1 was completed in 2-3 days in America, helping it attract more viewers.

Original Content

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In 2011 Netflix started producing its own content named as Netflix Original with House Of Cards releasing in 2013. Several other shows like Orange is the new Black, Altered Carbon, 13 Reasons Why and Narcos became popular TV series. People started liking the original content more, thus boosting Netflix’s aim of creating more than 1000 original series and movies. It is also casting many main-stream Hollywood celebrities and has definitely pulled a lot of movie lovers.

Flipside Of Binge-Watching

Since the beginning, Netflix has enabled autoplay on default, which makes a viewer watch more and more content. The more a show is binge-watched, the higher is the indicator of its content. But some new research shows that health issues like anxiety, depression and self-regulation occur due to continuous watching of intense content. The behaviour is similar to any other addiction. The release of dopamine in our brain stimulates us to watch more as if it’s a goal to be reached. Since it is so easy to access Netflix on our phones, it is even riskier.

Though Netflix has been able to provide a lot of good content obsessive viewing is surely bad for us mentally and physically. In the way, Netflix is surely going to reach out to more diverse communities and could even put the film industry into danger.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do people binge-watch Netflix instead of traditional TV?

Netflix offers entire seasons at once, allowing viewers to watch at their own pace without waiting for weekly episodes. This convenience, combined with superior content quality, has made traditional TV viewing less appealing to Indian audiences seeking flexibility and instant gratification.

How many hours do Netflix users watch per week?

As of 2017, more than 100 million Netflix subscribers watched 1 billion hours of content weekly. This staggering consumption demonstrates how binge-watching has become a dominant entertainment habit globally, including across India where viewership continues to surge.

What impact did Netflix have on movie theatre attendance?

Netflix significantly reduced conventional TV viewership and contributed to US movie theatres experiencing their lowest attendance in 23 years by 2017. This shift reflects a fundamental change in how audiences prefer consuming entertainment, prioritizing home streaming over cinema experiences.

How did Breaking Bad’s Netflix release impact its viewership?

Breaking Bad became massively popular after joining Netflix, with its final season attracting 10.3 million viewers on the first day alone. This success demonstrated Netflix’s ability to revive and amplify interest in previously aired shows through its massive subscriber base and binge-friendly format.

What is Netflix’s business strategy around binge-watching?

Binge-watching is central to Netflix’s strategy, allowing viewers to consume entire seasons quickly and immediately begin new shows. This approach increases engagement, subscriber retention, and reduces churn, making it the core USP that differentiates Netflix from traditional television networks.