TV shows and series typically serve as the point of “first engagement” for new Netflix and Hulu subscribers, 7Park Data found in an analysis of U.S. viewing data over the period of about a year.
TV series, rather than other types of content like movies, was the first engagement for 70% of new Netflix subscribers, and 88% among new Hulu customers, 7Park Data figured from data that was collected and analyzed from Feb. 1, 2017 to Jan. 9, 2018.
7Park Data said the insight is important in part because the kind of content that new customers consume on the first day of their subscriptions can make the difference between a brief trial and a long-standing relationship. It also sheds some light on the types of content that compel a consumer to subscribe.
Though TV was a top first engagement category from a general sense for new Hulu and Netflix subscribers, there are some differences in the genres that resonated most in the early going.
For Hulu, comedy shows, at 19%, was the top genre watched first by new subs, followed by dramas (16%), animation (10%), sci-fi (9%) and adventure. For Netflix, dramas (21%) led the way, followed by comedies (11%), thrillers (9%), crime-related shows and mysteries (8% each).
And although dramas were most often watched first by new Netflix subs, the data also showed that comedies drove overall Netflix TV streaming, 7Park Data found, noting that it shows that consumers often seek some levity to balance out their initial focus on drama-focused shows.
On a global, average basis, the three top “streamed first” titles from Netflix during the data collection period were Stranger Things, 13 Reasons Why and Narcos. Top licensed series on Netflix were The Walking Dead, Riverdale, Rick & Morty, Vikings, Grey’s Anatomy, and Breaking Bad. The top original series were Black Mirror, House of Cards and Orange is the New Black, according to 7Park Data’s study.
To obtain its findings, 7Park Data uses a on a proprietary process that uses a passive, opt-in collection of data from a global sample of more than two million active Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon users.
