We knew it was going on, we just did not know when. Now, Netflix has last but not least answered that burning problem. All 180 episodes of Seinfeld will be obtainable to stream on the platform starting Oct 1. You may now have a short moment to do the Happy Dance in celebration.
But with the arrival of Seinfeld will come a host of inquiries for Netflix. Most importantly, can the beloved sitcom replicate the achievement that Friends and The Office created for the streamer?
All 180 episodes of Seinfeld hit Netflix on Oct 1 pic.twitter.com/H73RZvNUw9
— Netflix (@netflix) September 1, 2021
WarnerMedia reclaimed the domestic streaming legal rights to Friends from Netflix for HBO Max for a whopping $425 million. NBCUniversal used $500 million to bring The Office solely to Peacock. Netflix’s 5-12 months offer for Seinfeld reportedly outstrips the expense for Friends and The Office by a wide margin as it consists of all over the world streaming rights. That is a good deal of funds. In spite of the avalanche of originals and shrinking but however prodigious library of accredited content material adorning Netflix’s mantle, the losses of Friends and The Workplace was a blow.
The Office reportedly accounted for 7% of Netflix’s viewing with Good friends garnering 4%, per The Wall Street Journal. Friends still left Netflix prior to Nielsen started tracking streaming ratings in March 2020, but The Office was a constant element on the company’s weekly U.S. Major 10 lists right up until its departure in January. It routinely averaged much more than 13 several hours of weekly viewership through its remain on Netflix. Conversely, Seinfeld accounted for a lot less than 1% of Hulu’s overall viewership, for every CNBC, and not often charted on Nielsen. Of course, this isn’t a a single-to-a person comparison by any extend as Netflix’s subscriber foundation dwarfs Hulu.
In the absence of Friends and The Business, exhibits this sort of as Manifest, Grey’s Anatomy and Criminal Minds have turn out to be Netflix’s most popular licensed collection. Exterior films these kinds of as Twilight have also burned brightly (but promptly) for the streamer this summertime. Nonetheless Netflix would like to establish a roster of potent originals and franchises and rely much less on certified material. The engagement these outside displays and movies bring are vital to lessening churn, but also a reminder that Netflix’s authentic library isn’t normally providing the identical bang-for-buck. Pandemic reruns have further more turned very long-working nostalgic sitcoms, like Buddies into scores monsters.
Seinfeld is anticipated to rapidly chart in both equally Netflix’s self-reported Leading 10 lists as perfectly as Nielsen’s. But can the 1990s sitcom replicate the regular engagement of the additional millennial-friendly Business? Can it turn into a mainstay amid the most-viewed programming in the course of the SVOD industry? The selling price the enterprise is having to pay implies that Netflix’s management thinks so.
