With locally produced, local language content is key to its current and continued success, Netflix is aggressively ramping up global productions, particularly in Europe and Asia says research from Ampere Analysis.
The analyst says that the SVOD leader is hoping to replicate the success of hits like Dark from Germany and Sacred Games from India, Netflix announced 24 new titles for Europe in Q4 2018 - that’s equivalent to the total for the region in 2017 and represents 22% of the upcoming catalogue. In these markets, Netflix has added eight and nine million subscribers respectively between 2017 and 2018 and the company has committed to increasing the number of European titles it produces by another third during 2019, having delivered 141 projects including recommissions in 2018. The streaming service also announced a major rights deal with the Roald Dahl Company, with ambitions to produce a vast ‘Dahl Universe’ of children’s titles.
Ultimately, Ampere regards Netflix’s investment in localised foreign language content as not only maintaining subscriber growth, but also helping it to repel fight domestic competition by captivating users with high-quality international productions. Ampere believes that the success of series like Elite, Narcos and Sacred Games with both native and English language audiences illustrate how international productions can deliver a double whammy for the service. 36% of Netflix’s upcoming originals will be non-English, and 46% will originate from outside the US and Canada.
Of the new content it is producing in 25 countries, Netflix currently has 133 titles originating outside of North America, including its first African title. Netflix is rapidly increasing production in key markets across Asia and Europe, particularly those that have created hit shows for the streaming service in the past. The UK has added 10 titles so far in Q4 2018, India eight, Germany six, and five each in Japan and Spain.
Central and South American productions represent 9% of the entire upcoming Netflix slate, but have only accounted for 5% of the slate in the fourth quarter of 2018. Moreover, even though the region is home to hits Narcos and 3%, only five titles from South America have been announced for the last quarter of 2018. As a result, Ampere advises that with Mexico currently considering a similar quota policy to that of the EU, Netflix may need to review its strategy in Latin America in the future.
“Locally produced, local language content is key to Netflix’s current and continued success, and these figures underline how important that strategy will remain in 2019,” said Ampere Analysis Analyst Fred Black. “But there are other issues too. Netflix is pushing hard to comply with incoming European Commission quotas that would set a minimum of 30% of streaming content to be European in origin, and European titles make up 29% of Netflix’s announcements this quarter. There is a possibility that we’ll see something similar in Latin America if Mexico introduces similar quotas as it has mooted. That may signal a change in production strategy.”
Ultimately, Ampere regards Netflix’s investment in localised foreign language content as not only maintaining subscriber growth, but also helping it to repel fight domestic competition by captivating users with high-quality international productions. Ampere believes that the success of series like Elite, Narcos and Sacred Games with both native and English language audiences illustrate how international productions can deliver a double whammy for the service. 36% of Netflix’s upcoming originals will be non-English, and 46% will originate from outside the US and Canada.
Of the new content it is producing in 25 countries, Netflix currently has 133 titles originating outside of North America, including its first African title. Netflix is rapidly increasing production in key markets across Asia and Europe, particularly those that have created hit shows for the streaming service in the past. The UK has added 10 titles so far in Q4 2018, India eight, Germany six, and five each in Japan and Spain.
Central and South American productions represent 9% of the entire upcoming Netflix slate, but have only accounted for 5% of the slate in the fourth quarter of 2018. Moreover, even though the region is home to hits Narcos and 3%, only five titles from South America have been announced for the last quarter of 2018. As a result, Ampere advises that with Mexico currently considering a similar quota policy to that of the EU, Netflix may need to review its strategy in Latin America in the future.
“Locally produced, local language content is key to Netflix’s current and continued success, and these figures underline how important that strategy will remain in 2019,” said Ampere Analysis Analyst Fred Black. “But there are other issues too. Netflix is pushing hard to comply with incoming European Commission quotas that would set a minimum of 30% of streaming content to be European in origin, and European titles make up 29% of Netflix’s announcements this quarter. There is a possibility that we’ll see something similar in Latin America if Mexico introduces similar quotas as it has mooted. That may signal a change in production strategy.”
