Image: 13 Reasons Why, Netflix
As the only TV data analytics firm focused on measuring global demand for television content, each week we reveal our findings for digital series and overall series demand for the American domestic market. Our TV data repository is the only global, cross-platform, country-specific audience demand measurement system encompassing over 3.5 trillion data points in 100+ markets, includes the United States.
In the week leading up to Memorial Day, we saw few changes to the digital series demand chart, however, Netflix is releasing more than 80 new titles in June, and we expect demand chart fluctuations as a result of this.
One full week after the second season was released, Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why has continued to have the upper hand in US demand, with the highest demand increase compared to last week (+58%); its #1 ranking has remained unchanged from the prior week. The young adult-oriented drama is no stranger to incited moral outrage over its profound content. The darkest moment in the final episode (spoiler alert) sees the service warning viewers that they might be triggered by its “tough, real-world issues” with the depiction of a man sexually assaulting another man. 13 Reasons Why creator Brian Yorkey, who defended the scene’s inclusion, claimed that it was developed from research on real-life cases of sexual violence against men in high school and that the decision to depict its graphic nature was not done gratuitously. We imagine 13 Reasons Why will continue to feature in the US chart for many months as audiences come to terms with this latest installement.
Elsewhere in the top 5, demand for Cobra Kai decreased compared to last week (-15%) yet its ranking as the #2 digital original remains unchanged from a week earlier. Following Martin Kove’s appearance in the Season 1 finale, the Karate Kid alum is joining the cast in season two. In the bottom 5, Netflix’s The Crown experienced a sizable growth in demand in contrast to the past week; our TV data indicates that the historical drama’s demand grew 54% compared to the previous week. The Crown was previously ranked No. 28 when it picked up a supporting actress award at the BAFTA television awards on May 13. Rounding out the top 10, Netflix’s Stranger Things has reappeared in tenth position, after being absent the prior week, with 12.7 million Demand Expressions.
In the overall chart, most of the titles featured will be on hiatus at the end of the May Sweeps period, with summer series premiering soon. The title that had a demand increase of note is ABC’s American Idol, which declared a winner for the 2017/18 cycle of the rebooted singing competition series, causing demand to rise 12% compared to the prior week.
For more information about global streaming television demand trends across 10 markets in the first quarter of 2018, download the Global Television Demand Report.
