Netflix viewers spend one-third of time watching foreign-language productions

K-drama The Glory, streamed for 662 million hours, revealed as platform's third most popular show

Netflix has shared an extensive report of its global viewership numbers for the first time. AFP

Dec 13, 2023

Foreign-language productions account for almost a third of all Netflix content streamed, the platform says.

South Korean drama The Glory racked up 662 million hours of streaming between January and June this year, the third most-watched show on Netflix. La Reina del Sur was sixth with 429.6 million.

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The top Arabic language show was The Exchange, which is set in Kuwait. It garnered 19.3 million hours. Meanwhile, UAE reality show Dubai Bling notched 18.6 million hours.

In the top 10 film category, French flick AKA was ninth, with 120 million hours streamed.

The data was revealed in the What We Watched, A Netflix Engagement Report, the platform's first biannual insight into viewership trends. It looked at 18,000 titles, which accrued 100 billion hours of viewing time.

The most popular show was The Night Agent (812.1 million hours) and the most popular film was The Mother (249.9 million hours).

K-drama The Glory was the third most popular Netflix show in the first half of this year. Photo: Netflix

Speaking about the report, Netflix's chief executive Ted Sarandos said licensed material accounts for 55 per cent of its viewership. Older shows such as Breaking Bad and Suits remain a strong pull for viewers.

Of the top 10 shows and films on the list, only six were released this year, while the others were from last year or 2021.

Korean shows and films lead the way among foreign language pr

oductions, with many placing in the top 50 including the reality show Physical 100 (in 15th) and the fourth season of dating show Love is Blind (in 17th).

Spanish shows and films also have a strong following.