Netflix Says It’s Committed to a Binge-Release Strategy for Series

variety.com:

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Despite rumors to the contrary, Netflix says it has no plans to stop dropping all episodes of a TV show at once for binge-friendly viewing. “We think our bingeable release model helps drive substantial engagement, especially for newer titles,” Netflix said in its Q3 shareholder letter, as part of announcing quarterly results Tuesday. “This enables viewers to lose themselves in stories they love.” The company’s comments come after the Puck newsletter last month reported that Netflix execs were mulling a change to binge strategy and release major titles on a weekly schedule.

Netflix, which pioneered the practice of binge-releasing TV seasons in their entirety, said it’s sticking with that game plan. Click here to sign up for Variety’s free Strictly Business newsletter covering earnings, financial news, and more. “It’s hard to imagine, for example, how a Korean title like ‘Squid Game’ would have become a mega hitglobally without the momentum that came from people being able to binge it,” Netflix said in the shareholder letter. “We believe the ability for our members to immerse themselves in a story from start to finish increases their enjoyment but also their likelihood to tell their friends, which then means more people watch, join and stay with Netflix.” The binge-release approach helped “drive significant interest” in Ryan Murphy’s “Dahmer — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story,” which is now its No.

2 English original series in the initial 28-day window, according to Netflix. The company included a chart from Google Trends, which it said illustrated how the ability to watch all 10 episodes of “Monster” — all released on Sept.