Netflix saws the branch it’s sitting on: Binge-watching could become impossible
Things aren’t going well at Netflix. The streaming primus is struggling with many problems. Customers are expecting advertising and an end to account sharing soon. But that’s not all. Even binge could soon be over.
Netflix’s DNA at stake: binge-watching on the brink?
Netflix made streaming big. Now, however, the US provider has to cope with increasing competition. For the streaming service, the new situation has recently shown itself for the first time in declining subscription numbers. There are several ideas to change that. According to experts, sooner or later one of Netflix’s fundamental features is up for debate: the binge.
Watching entire series on a weekend or day off – Netflix has made this a hit with many viewers. Unlike many other streaming services still sticking to it. But how long?
“With Netflix, or anyone else, never say never,” says Peter Csathy, head of management consultancy Creative Media. CNBC). After all, they had previously promised that there would be no advertising on Netflix. “Don’t assume that binge will last forever.” Netflix has not commented on this.
Meanwhile, the competition saw off the classic binge for new releases long ago. Disney+, for example, brings new series from its own production – especially from the Star Wars and Marvel franchises, long staggered out of here. Currently on Obi-Wan Kenobi with one episode per week.
Netflix flagship: Stranger Things season 4 appears in two parts.
With Stranger Things, Netflix shows that it can be different
The strategy is not entirely new at Netflix either. The fourth season of Stranger Things is currently being released in two blocks. It originally started because of production shifts during the pandemic, but found that customers are accepting both the two-part release and everything at once, says co-CEO Ted Sarandos. Man want to give customers a choice.
In this way, Netflix can also learn from the current releases. Because Bingen brings with it a problem for Netflix: If you only want to see a few series, you can, for example get Netflix for two months, start and then cancel again. If new episodes come out every week, viewers are forced to stay.
