When it was founded in 1997, Netflix first started as a DVD rental-by-mail service. But it is now one of the largest media streaming services worldwide. After realising the potential of video streaming technology in 2007, the company decided to shift to the video-on-demand subscription model.
Since then, the revenue and number of subscribers is always on the rise. For instance, it has already made $5.76 billion in the first quarter of 2020. When it comes to the subscribers, the number currently stands at over 180 million subscribers globally, and another 16 million new subscribers joined within the first three months of 2020. If you would like to know more interesting facts about Netflix, then here are some great facts and statistics for you to discover.
Netflix started with only 1,000 titles
Netflix invented a streaming service named ‘Watch Now’ in January 2007 with only 1,000 titles. The reason for the small selection was as a result of stiff rivalry from the DVD rental services. At the time, Netflix introduced a new streaming service where users could watch their favourite films from their PCs instead of waiting for DVD deliveries.
The idea may seem like an ordinary invention today, but it was an exceptional invention back then. As Netflix has developed over the years, it has added more and more titles to its library including some great films like The King’s Speech, which is one of the essential films for film students to watch.
Some Netflix users still rely on DVD rentals
Currently, Netflix subscribers stand at 182.86 million. Out of this number, 61.04 million are US subscribers, while the rest comes from the other parts of the world. Although Netflix used to be a DVD -by-mail company, there are still 2.7 million subscribers in the US that use that service.
The limited selection of streaming titles on the online platform is perhaps the main reason why some subscribers still opt for Netflix DVDs. Currently, Netflix’s streaming platform has less than 6,000 film titles, while the DVD users get over 100,000 titles. The DVD rental service is estimated to last up to 2025.
Over 50% of US adults accesses Netflix
According to a research study in 2017, around 54% of adult users in the US have access to Netflix. It is an incredible rise since only 28% of adults in the US accessed Netflix in 2011.
Most subscribers use Netflix due to its original shows
Most subscribers who use Netflix say that they use the platform primarily due to the original programs it offers. These are the programs that you cannot come across on any other platform. Besides the originality, the users say that they love the fact that Netflix does not include ads that interrupt you while watching the films. People are exposed to millions of ads on the internet, and that’s the reason they love watching ad-free shows.
Netflix users spend around one billion hours per week watching content
You read that right! The daily streaming and watching add up to one billion hours of watching weekly. It may feel like a lot of time, primarily due to the incorporation of the word ‘billion’. However, if you divide the hours with the number of subscribers, you’ll realise that every subscriber spends only about 6.7 hours weekly on the platform.
On Netflix there are many films and TV shows that viewers can tune into, many titles starring cream of the crop Academy-Award winning actors. But what are the chances of actually winning an Oscar? According to this quiz the odds are 1 in 11,500.
Netflix awarded $40 million to Chris Rock to create two comedy specials
Over the past few years Netflix has paid comedians large amounts of money for comedy specials. Amy Schumer, Ellen DeGeneres, and Ricky Gervais are just some comedians that have signed massive deals with the platform.
In 2016, Chris Rock signed a deal with Netflix worth $40 million for two specials. Irrespective of the rivals such as Hulu, YouTube and Disney+, Netflix does not seem to stop working with the best individuals and teams in the industry anytime soon.