Netflix users watched The Night Agent for 812 million hours in the first six months of 2023.
It meant the thriller was the most watched programme on the streaming platform between January and June. In second place it was Ginny and Georgia series two, which was streamed for 665.1 million hours over the same time.
For the first time, the platform has released viewing statistics for 99% of its programmes, reports The BBC. It had previously been criticised for not being transparent about how content performs.
It was an issue raised in the Hollywood strikes this year. Actors and writers were demanding higher royalties for shows that were performing better.
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Netflix co-chief executive Ted Sarandos told reporters that the lack of transparency had led to a level of distrust in the creator community. He said Netflix kept the data private while it was building its customer base.
In a blog post, Netflix said: “This is a big step forward for Netflix and our industry. We believe the viewing information in this report — combined with our weekly Top 10 and Most Popular lists — will give creators and our industry deeper insights into our audiences, and what resonates with them.”
Netflix says the What We Watched report ranks 18,000 titles – around 99% of its content – by the amount of hours viewed in the first half ot the year. It will now release the report every six months.
As well as The Night Agent, Ginny and Georgia, Gilmore Girls, Seinfeld, Friends and The Office ranked highly. While The Mother, starring Jennifer Lopez, was the top movie, having been watched for more than 249 million hours.
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Non-English content was around 30% of the streams on Netflix. While it says older titles provide “tremendous value” for customers and rights holders.
Its blog added: “Success on Netflix comes in all shapes and sizes, and is not determined by hours viewed alone. We have enormously successful movies and TV shows with both lower and higher hours viewed. It’s all about whether a movie or TV show thrilled its audience — and the size of that audience relative to the economics of the title.”
Since 2021, Netflix has released weekly Top 10 and Most Popular lists. It said half of the titles this year appeared on the lists.
Top 10 most watched programmes on Netflix
Rank shows the programme title and hours spent watching in millions.
- The Night Agent: Season 1 – 812.1
- Ginny and Georgia: Season 2 – 665.1
- The Glory: Season 1 – 622.8
- Wednesday: Season 1 – 507.7
- Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story – 503
- You: Season 4 – 440.6
- La Reina del Sur: Season 3 – 429.6
- Outer Bank: Season 3 – 402.5
- Ginny and Georgia: Season 1 – 302.1
- FUBAR: Season 1 – 266.2
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story
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