Secret weapon for Netflix- Squid Game, Kingdom impact
It took “Squid Game” just four weeks this past fall to become the most-watched Netflix Inc. show ever released in any language. But when it comes to the streaming giant’s global ambitions, what happened afterward matters even more — viewers who devoured “Squid Game” started watching more shows in Korean. During the week of Oct. 11, “My Name,” a drama about a woman seeking to avenge her father’s murder, jumped into the Netflix top 10 for non-English series. The following week, “The King’s Affection,” a romance set during the Joseon Dynasty, did the same. The week of Nov. 15, “Hellbound,” a fantasy thriller set in the near future, supplanted “Squid Game” as the most-watched non-English show on Netflix across the world.
The series weren’t just popular in South Korea. People were consuming them in Indonesia, Thailand, Colombia and Mexico. All told, over the past six months, South Korea has contributed more popular Netflix programs than any country other than the U.S., according to the company’s weekly top 10 lists.
Now, Netflix is hoping to ride its Korean surge to greater success elsewhere in the Asia Pacific zone. Netflix, which reports earnings next week, ended September with 213 million subscribers, the most of any streaming service, and executives believe it can one day reach 500 million customers. The pressure remains to keep growing its audience. Investors, who value the company at more than $230 billion, expect Netflix to continue its track record of adding 20 million or so customers each year.
To do so, Asia Pacific currently represents Netflix’s greatest opportunity for growth, said Michael Morris, an analyst with Guggenheim. “If you are on this path to hundreds and hundreds of millions of subscribers, a lot of it
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