Netflix is a streaming beast that doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon. When the streaming service was first revealed in 2007, the industry wasn’t truly ready for how game-changing this move would be. Audiences had so much content at their fingertips for an extremely low price. Netflix is the main reason that video rental places like Blockbusters no longer exist.
Streaming services continued to grow with each passing year. Despite the threats of Disney Plus, HBO Max, Amazon Prime, Paramount Plus, and numerous other streaming services, Netflix remains the king with 232 million subscribers. That could be because Netflix has shelled out so much original content in the past couple of years.
Netflix released 891 originals in 2022. That’s up from the 788 original shows and movies that the streaming service put out in 2021. Netflix rakes in billions each year, but, notably, the company tends to lose more than it spends since the amount of content it releases is astronomical. The company is just now starting to see a return in profits for its yearly investment. However, should Netflix cut back on the number of originals that they release each year?
Too Many Shows Go Under The Radar
Let’s get obvious out of the way: Netflix is spending WAY too much on content. When the brand first arrived on the scene in 2007, original shows like Orange is the New Black and House of Cards paved the way for an experience in watching television – binging watching. Early on, Netflix was known for the quality of its content, which is what drove fans to its service.
Now, the service is drowning in too much content. Shows like Wednesday, Squid Game, or Money Heist can break through the sea of shows that the service releases monthly. However, great shows like I Am Not Okay With This, 1899, Freeridge, or Daybreak often get overlooked because there’s simply too much content thrown on the streaming service.
It’s understandable why Netflix feels that it has to shove so many original stories on its service. The brand is competing against giants such as Disney and HBO. However, the amount of spending on so much content does allow audiences a chance to breathe and truly explore what these shows or movies have to offer.
The Lack of Advertisement
Imagine if Orange is the New Black or Stranger Things were just thrown into the never-ending release of content? It’s quite possible that these shows wouldn’t have been the success that they are today. The advantage these shows had was word of mouth. The chatter about these shows spanned for weeks because new content wasn’t thrown in their faces each week.
Remember The Cloverfield Paradox Superbowl commercial that saw drones of fans go over to the streaming service and watch the Netflix exclusive? Netflix doesn’t particularly do clever marketing for its original content these days. Given the abundance of shows and movies that are released yearly, it would be nearly impossible because it would cost a fortune to do so.
The Quality Has Noticeably Taken A Hit
Netflix still has gems coming out monthly. However, with the service producing so much content, there’s no way that every original will match the standards that Orange is the New Black or Roma set. For every Irishman or Glass Onion, there are forgettable affairs like 365 Days or Kissing Booth.
Netflix is wisely targeting every demographic that it can. But it doesn’t have the same standard that it set early on. Cutting back on shows would not only allow the streaming service to advertise their products to people who don’t watch Netflix. In addition, it would allow the service to focus on the quality aspects of the content to make sure it’s something worth being released on Netflix.
Netflix is far from in trouble. In fact, the streaming service just added tons of subscribers following the crackdown on password sharing. However, producing so much content in a year WILL bite them in the ass eventually. The purpose of any business is to see a return on their investment. Given shows or movies a genuine chance to find an audience would be beneficial for the streaming service in the long run.
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