WIH+: The Netflix Enigma

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Welcome back to What I’m Hearing+, my weekly dispatch focused on the streaming industry and the analytics behind it all. If this email was forwarded to you, click here to subscribe.

Tonight, a few thoughts on the Netflix paradox: How a year of massive hits coincided with its worst-ever performance in the markets, and what Ted Sarandos and Reed Hastings can do to change the narrative. But first…

Does HBO Max’s Name Change Really Matter?

HBO Max may very well just become “Max,” which has naturally stirred up emotions among the typical parties. Removing HBO from the name effectively erases the most premium part of the offering, perhaps devaluing HBO in the process. But, some counter, that’s the point: HBO can only scale so far, and having the name in the name deters the growth needed to fully compete globally...

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The Great Netflix Hit Factory Paradox

Netflix pumped out more megahits in 2022 than any time in recent history, so why is subscription growth petering domestically as its stock limply recovers? Hollywood may be a hits business, but streaming is a little more complicated.

JULIA ALEXANDER

Netflix is on a hot streak. Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is the third series to surpass one billion hours viewed (about 112 million complete season streams) in 60 days, just behind Stranger Things 4 and Squid Game. Wednesday, the new Addams Family coming-of-age series from Tim Burton, delivered the biggest premiere weekend of any English-speaking title on the service. The show amassed more than 750 million hours viewed over the past two weeks, and will likely break into Netflix’s Top 10 most watched English-speaking premieres ever next week. And barring any last minute shifts, Stranger Things 4 will be crowned the biggest show of 2022 by almost any metric—views, demand, social media engagement, etcetera.

In fact, 50 percent of all of Netflix’s Top 10 English-speaking debuts premiered in 2022, including Ozark’s fourth season and...

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