In March 2022, the number of original and exclusive titles in the US Netflix catalog accounted for over 50% of all programs available on the platform. For the first time in the history of the company. Indeed, according to data compiled by Ampere, there are currently over 3,700 “Netflix Original” (i.e. original and exclusive) branded films and TV seasons in the US Netflix offering that have consistently offered around 7,000 titles over the past three years. 14.8% of the programs offered are “Exclusive” and 35.9% “Original”.
6.2 billion invested in the “Originals” in 2021
The Originals has been the focus of Netflix strategy for several years now. In September 2016, when “Original” and “Exclusive” accounted for only 5% of the US catalogue, then CFO David Wells set a goal of a 50:50 split between original and licensed titles. . The target has been reached this year as Netflix’s spending on original content peaked at $6.2 billion in 2021, more than double the $2.8 billion figure of second-largest investor, Disney+.
Exclusive and popular
This investment helped establish Netflix as the leading distributor of popular content. Ampere Popularity Rankings shows that in Q1 2022, Netflix original and exclusive programming accounted for an average of 12% of the top 100 titles available on SVoD in the US, the highest share of any SVoD platform.
Without studios
Ampere Analysis notes that Netflix is becoming more and more autonomous from the studios, which is an absolute must as the studios started the SVOD battle and consequently phased Netflix out of their programming. In addition, The Originals, according to Ampère, also have real power internationally, both because they are exclusive and because they are cheaper to distribute than studio programs.
75% “Original” in 2024
Based on current growth rates, the research firm has estimated that by the end of 2024, 75% of movies and series available on Netflix will be either original or exclusive. pass the 50% threshold by the fourth quarter of 2022.
Despite this proactive policy, Netflix lags behind Apple, which offers the largest share of the “original”, with a much smaller offering, it’s true. But Netflix is ahead of Amazon Prime Video (9%) and Hulu (4%), the other two incumbent streaming operators.