Streaming TV is incredibly popular, and we know that millions of people watch shows and movies on Netflix, Disney +, and other services every day. However, it was difficult to find actual viewer numbers for Netflix and streaming products. There was no real way to know for sure how many people were streaming a new show or movie before, but Netflix just took a big step to change that. The only problem is that it will only be in the UK.
Netflix has officially joined Barb, the Audience Research Board of British broadcasters. The group measures audience size for television and will now do the same for streaming platforms. This is the first time Netflix will have its audience measured by an outside body. Previously, the only time we got detailed numbers on Netflix views was when Netflix wanted to promote their success.
And Netflix may just be the first streaming service to join Barb. According to the BBCtout service, which “accounts for more than 0.5% of the total identified views”, its audience will be measured by the group, which implies that Disney + and other popular services will also fall under this umbrella.
Several organizations, including Nielsen, have done their best to measure streaming audience so far, but it has always been an exercise in making the best estimate based on the data provided. No streaming service releases numbers on a regular basis, and even if they did, there is no way of knowing how accurate those numbers would be as they are all internal.
The reason Netflix is likely to join Barb now is that Barb numbers are how advertising rates are determined and with Netflix in the process of launching an ad-supported tier, advertisers will likely want an independent organization. verifying viewers before shelling out Netflix’s money. trying to deal with ad sales.
It will certainly be interesting to see what Netflix’s charts look like when Barb starts reporting on them in November. Traditional streaming channels will have an idea of how they compare to Netflix and we will be able to get an idea of not only what the best shows on Netflix really are, but also what “bad” streaming show actually looks like. . What do people actually watch with a Netflix membership?
With Netflix and Disney + adding ads to their service in more markets, it will be interesting to see if this change affects streaming platforms nationwide as well. Too often, fans of streaming shows see their favorites deleted without any explanation. At least this way we can start seeing which shows people actually watch and which ones they don’t.
Source: Cinemablend
