The limited data available on streaming viewership has long suggested that the majority of original series on SVOD platforms are barely watched. But new knowledge of its viewership numbers reveals just how vast a gap there is between top-hit series and the rest of the field.
With franchises surging to historic heights in 2022, with nearly 1,000 original titles released on major SVOD platforms (as explained in our VIP+ special report, “The Death of Peak TV”), most services viewership was concentrated in fewer than 20 programs.
The top 20 most-watched TV seasons will account for the majority of original series viewership across nearly every major U.S.-based SVOD platform in 2022, according to data from Luminate's new streaming ratings product. It is shown that In fact, the top 20, which was the only one of these services to have a TV season, add up to nearly half of all hours of original programming in the US.
In fact, the gap between the top-performing programs and the other programs is even more pronounced. In 2022, he released 50 original series (excluding children's content) on Disney+, where his 10 most-watched seasons accounted for nearly 80% of his original series viewing time. For the next 10 he's just over 16%.
Meanwhile, non-Top 20 seasons accounted for only about 5% of viewing time, the second lowest percentage among major SVODs behind NBCUniversal's Peacock (3%).
This is another sign that media companies grossly overspent on original content during the heyday of television. The sheer volume of series produced to attract subscribers looks, in hindsight, like a poorly thought out strategy done with the sole purpose of imitating Netflix. Netflix produced so many shows because they had to build their own library from scratch.
Comparing viewership numbers to 2023, when TV output finally dropped, emphasizes this point even more. Across all platforms, seasons outside of the top 20 saw a significant increase in viewership. This indicates that with fewer new titles to watch, consumers are dividing their viewing time more evenly between series that include previously released original seasons.
This data also shows that most streaming originals don't have the rewatch value that many older series offer. Popular library shows like “Grey’s Anatomy” consistently rank among the most-watched titles on streaming every week and year, but new originals have a hard time retaining viewers. is.
Looking back at Disney+, only two of the top 10 original seasons in 2022 reappeared in the top 10 the following year: “The Mandalorian” season 2 and the limited series “Andor” were both ranked “Stars.”・Wars” work. (In fact, the former's share of viewing time has increased over the years, perhaps even further enhanced by the premiere of the third season.)
With this in mind, it's clear that the demise of Peak TV could actually be a boon for streaming traditional media players.
After spending billions of dollars on original content with lackluster results — no SVOD can match Netflix's subscriber numbers — these companies believe a more thoughtful content strategy could We need to face the fact that it could ultimately yield similar rewards at a much lower cost. If this brings the industry back to a new lease of health, the demise of Peak TV could ultimately mean new life for Hollywood.