Netflix says it wants to be more transparent about viewership on its platform, starting with the information it shares with creators.
In a letter shared to U.K. parliament, the streaming giant explained that it uses three metrics when analyzing viewership — “starters,” “watchers” and “completers.”
According to Netflix, starters are “households that watch two minutes of a film or one episode,” while completers are “households that watch 90 percent of a film or season of a series.”
Netflix says it mainly shares information related to starters and completers with producers and directors. Further, Netflix says it focuses on contents’ first seven days, followed by the first 28 days after content release.
Meanwhile, watchers are “the households that watch 70 percent of a film or single episode of a series.” Watchers are the figures that Netflix commonly reveals to the public. For example, the company revealed last week that 64 million people were “watchers” of Stranger Things‘ fourth season.
Netflix says it will reveal more of this type of viewership data in more countries outside of Europe and North America based on feedback from its partners.
In the past, Netflix has been criticized for not revealing much about its viewership. Unlike the publicly accessible ratings of traditional TV shows or the box office tracking of theatrical film releases, Netflix doesn’t have to disclose the success of its films.
Therefore, the streaming giant typically only talks about shows when they rack up significant viewers, like Stranger Things. When shows perhaps seemingly aren’t doing so well for the streamer, it sometimes cancels them with little communication.
In fact, the company cancelled acclaimed animated comedy Tuca and Bertie in July after one season. Fans and even the show’s creator spoke up about how there was little communication from Netflix regarding the show’s performance.
It remains to be seen how Netflix’s approach to revealing viewership figures may change in the future.
Via: The Verge
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