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Netflix's days of binge model releases could be coming to an end, as the streaming service reportedly could move to weekly releases for some shows.
Binge model releases are a staple of Netflix, but a new report claims the streaming service wants to begin moving away from them and embrace more week-to-week releases. The streaming wars have had a great impact on Netflix in recent years. For all the success that has been found through major blockbusters like The Gray Man or its biggest shows like Stranger Things, the increased competition has put even greater pressure on these originals to perform. This is becoming increasingly more difficult as Disney+, HBO Max, Prime Video, Hulu, Apple TV+, Peacock, and more ramp up original programming.
Due to the influx of content that is immediately within reach from streaming services, there have been a lot of conversations about how Netflix can change and adapt to stay ahead of the game. 2022 has been quite informative in that regard. Netflix previously confirmed plans for a lower-priced plan supported by ads that will come in 2023. The service has also become a lot harsher with its cancelations, especially for negatively reviewed originals like Cowboy Beebop and Resident Evil. The latter and the growing importance Netflix places on viewership in the first week and month of a show's release have reignited conversations about if the binge release model is still best.
It now appears that Netflix could be on the verge of making a big change. In a new edition of the Puck News newsletter, it is suggested that Netflix wants to move away from binge model releases in some form. Netflix currently uses weekly episode drops for some reality competition shows, but there might soon be a time when it becomes used for Netflix's biggest originals as a means of keeping viewers engaged over a longer period of time. Matthew Belloni noted in the newsletter that Netflix CEO Reed Hastings "has seemed unwilling to pivot off the binge model because he hasn’t needed or wanted to. Now, it appears, he does."
Netflix has already begun experimenting with other release models besides the binge model that worked so well for them. Recently, subscribers have seen Ozark season 4 and Stranger Things season 4 split into two parts. Netflix plans to do the same with Manifest season 4. The potential move to weekly episode drops for some shows would finally see Netflix revert to the original television release model that Disney+, Prime Video, and its other major streaming competition also use.
There have long been calls for Netflix to begin releasing episodes weekly. It gives audiences an easier way to experience the show without worrying about seeing spoilers for how Cobra Kai season 5 ends on the day all 10 episodes are released. It also aids word of mouth on great shows to allow the viewership to grow as the season progresses. Meanwhile, Netflix would benefit from having audiences return to the service weekly for new episodes and seeing their shows start brand-new conversations and theorizing that the binge model does not allow for. However, since Netflix already confirmed that Stranger Things season 5 will keep its binge release model, it will be fascinating to see what major show could potentially get the weekly release treatment.
Jojo fridays may be back :meow-fiesta:
My main thought as well. Netflix really took the hype out of Stone Ocean