Benzinga - by Chris Katje, Benzinga Staff Writer.
One of the hit shows for streaming giant Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) premiered the first part of its third season last week.
Here's a look at the early viewership and how it compares to the earlier seasons.
What Happened: Netflix ended the first quarter with 269.60 million paid global subscribers. Many of those subscribers tuned in to watch the first four episodes of season 3 of the hit original series "Bridgerton."
Premiering on May 16 on Netflix, the first four episodes of the third season had 45.1 million views and a total of 165.2 million hours watched according to the company. The series ranked in the top 10 in 92 countries for Netflix during its premiere week.
The return of "Bridgerton" also led to the first season and second season ranking fourth and eighth, respectively, among English language shows for the week with 37.3 million hours and 27.7 million hours watched, respectively.
For comparison, the second season of "Bridgerton" released in 2022 had 193 million hours watched in its first three days of release. The caveat is that the second season had all eight episodes released in the first week.
Netflix has changed the way it tracks views over the years, making the comparison harder to track as well.
By releasing the third season in two parts, Netflix could show two huge premiere weeks in the second quarter and see viewership trickle over into the third quarter, which begins in July.
The first season of "Bridgerton" remains one of the most viewed English language series of all time on Netflix with 625.5 million hours watched in its first 28 days of release.
Season 2 of "Bridgerton" had the biggest premiere weekend by total hours for an English language series on Netflix at the time. While that record wasn't beaten, Netflix's recent decision could help spread out the love for the series.
Related Link: Netflix Stock Sized Up By 7 Analysts Post Q1 Results: ‘Pivot From A High-Growth, Low-Profit Business To A Slow-Growth, High-Profit Business’
What's Next: The release of the second part of Season 3 of "Bridgerton" is one of several key releases that could help power subscription figures for Netflix's paid plans and its ad-supported plan, which recently hit 40 million monthly active users.
While the second part falls in the same second quarter as the first part, the spreading out could help power subscribers to stick around or sign up in the second quarter and could also see strong viewership carry over into the third quarter for anyone who doesn’t immediately binge watch the series.
To add to the third-quarter excitement, Netflix also has the live boxing event that features Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul on July 20.
The highly anticipated "Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F," starring Eddie Murphy is the fourth film in the hit franchise and premieres on Netflix on July 3.
Netflix could also be in store for a strong fourth quarter with the highly anticipated release of the second season of "Squid Game" said to be coming in the back half of 2024.
The streaming giant also has two National Football League games that will stream on Christmas Day in the fourth quarter.
NFLX Price Action: Netflix shares trade at $640.21 versus a 52-week range of $344.73 to $650.88. Shares of Netflix are up 78% over the last year and up 32% year-to-date in 2024.
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Photo: Liam Daniel for Netflix
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