Research: Netflix’s new seasons significantly lift older seasons
August 20, 2024

Research from Ampere Analysis highlights how new season releases boost the viewing of older seasons. Analysis of a basket of shows debuting new seasons on Netflix in H2 2023 revealed that older seasons of these shows saw an increase of 86 per cent in viewing hours on H1 2023.
Titles without a new season saw a natural viewing decline of 46 per cent over the same period.
Other key findings
- New releases are hugely impactful and draw the largest viewership for Netflix. 2023 releases accounted for over one quarter (26 per cent) of TV season viewing hours that year. However, new seasons also add value to older seasons by attracting first-time viewers and encouraging repeat viewing from existing fans
- Original French Crime & Thriller series Lupin – which released Part 3 in October 2023 – saw the most significant increase. Viewing hours for Part 1 and Part 2 soared from 33 million in H1 2023 to 165 million in H2 2023, a five-fold increase
- Scripted series were the main beneficiaries of this trend. The average returning series saw past seasons’ viewing hours double in the second half of the year
- Unscripted series – while still positively impacted by the arrival of new seasons – don’t benefit as much as scripted series. The average unscripted show with a new season saw a 7 per cent decline in viewing compared to H1 2023. This is relative to a baseline fall in viewing for unscripted shows with no 2023 release of 63 per cent in H2 compared to H1. So while new releases may not be able to uplift unscripted titles’ viewing as strongly as scripted, they can still slow the natural decline in series viewing over time
- The boost from new releases also extends to related titles. Animated series One Piece saw a viewing uplift of 67 per cent in H2 2023 with the release of Netflix’s live-action series of the same name. Squid Game recorded a 32 per cent increase for H2 2023 with the release of the Reality spin-off Squid Game: The Challenge.
Joe Hall, Senior Analyst at Ampere Analysis, commented: “Although new releases draw the largest viewership for Netflix, continuing series also reignite interest in older content from existing and new fans. With streaming business models increasingly focused on ad-supported tiers, viewing volumes are crucial for attracting advertisers and generating ad revenue. This makes returning series an attractive prospect to these companies, as they can help sustain engagement for older seasons long after release.”