Non-English shows boost Netflix subscriptions
Netflix continued to attract new subscribers during the third quarter of 2021, thanks primarily to its non-English language shows, with North Korean Squid Game becoming the platform’s most popular show to date.
The streaming giant added 4.4 million users in the three months to 30 September, more than double the previous quarter, beating analysts’ estimates.
After a lighter-than-normal content slate in the first two quarters due to COVID-related production delays in 2020, “we are seeing the positive effects of a stronger slate in the second half of the year,” Netflix said in a letter to shareholders.
During the third quarter, the company’s revenue grew 16% year over year to $7.5 billion, while operating income rose 33% vs. the prior year quarter to $1.8 billion. Netflix said it expects to add some 8.5 million subscribers in the fourth quarter.
“We’re in uncharted territory,” Netflix co-CEO Reed Hastings said in a post-earnings video interview. “We have so much content coming in Q4 like we’ve never had, so we’ll have to feel our way through and it rolls into a great next year also.”
Squid Game was the biggest hit
Korean drama series Squid Game was Netflix’s biggest hit, watched by 142 million households in its first four weeks.
The TV series – which tells the story of a group of people forced to play deadly children’s games for money – has become a global phenomenon and dethroned period drama Bridgerton as Netflix’s most popular show to date. According to Bloomberg, Squid Game is thought to be worth some $900m to the streaming firm.
Another non-English language show, La Casa de Papel (aka Money Heist), also did well, with season five being watched by 69 million viewers in its first four weeks.
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