Netflix is changing how it measures viewer numbers after success of Squid Game

Squid Game
(Image credit: Netflix)

Netflix is changing the way it measures its viewing figures, according to its Q3 letter to shareholders (via The Hollywood Reporter).

The streamer used to count two minutes of viewing time on a movie or TV show as a view, whereas now it will report the number of hours watched in the first 28 days on the platform. Netflix has also said that it will report these figures more regularly.

"We think engagement as measured by hours viewed is a slightly better indicator of the overall success of our titles and member satisfaction," reads the shareholder letter. "It also matches how outside services measure TV viewing and gives proper credit to rewatching."

Squid Game racked up 142 million views over its first 28 days of release, which bypasses all previous records held by Netflix movies and shows – the previous record-holder was Extraction, the Chris Hemsworth-led actioner, which amassed 99 million views in its first month. The only TV show to come close is Bridgerton, with 82 million views.

With the new metric, however, the numbers are even more impressive: according to Bloomberg, Squid Game has accumulated 1.4 billion hours of viewing time in its first 23 days. Bridgerton still comes in at second place with 625 million hours of viewing worldwide. The Bloomberg report also says that Squid Game is set to create nearly $900 million in value for Netflix, despite only costing $21.4 million to make.

If you're one of the millions of people who's already tuned into Squid Game, check out our list of the other best Netflix shows that you can stream right now.

Entertainment Writer

I’m an Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering everything film and TV-related across the Total Film and SFX sections. I help bring you all the latest news and also the occasional feature too. I’ve previously written for publications like HuffPost and i-D after getting my NCTJ Diploma in Multimedia Journalism. 

Read more
Squid Game season 2
Squid Game season 2 is on track to beat season 1 on Netflix, but it's just been knocked off the top spot by something completely different
Squid Game season 2
Squid Game season 2 beats Wednesday to have Netflix's biggest ever premiere week
Squid Game Season 2 on Netflix
Netflix’s most popular K-drama in 2024 wasn't Squid Game season 2, it was this show with a perfect Rotten Tomatoes score
Millie Bobby Brown in The Electric State
Netflix expects to spend $18,000,000,000 on shows, movies, and more in 2025: "We're not anywhere near a ceiling"
Kathryn Hahn as Agatha in Marvel TV series Agatha All Along
Despite being streamed for billions of minutes in 2024, Agatha All Along and Echo reportedly had smaller Disney Plus audiences than one of Marvel's most criticized shows
Johnny Lawrence in Cobra Kai
Cobra Kai season 6, part 3 has dropped almost 9 million views from part 1 on Netflix
Latest in Netflix
Giancarlo Esposito in The Electric State
The Electric State star Giancarlo Esposito explains why adapting the bleak novel into a family friendly adventure was the right decision: "I'm going to bring my children with me"
Penn Badgley and Charlotte Richie in You season 5
You season 5 trailer introduces Joe's new love interest and teases familiar faces in the final installment of the Netflix thriller
Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn in Joker 2
Wednesday star Jenna Ortega teases Lady Gaga's appearance in season 2 of the Netflix show: "It was just a really, really special environment"
Giancarlo Esposito in The Electric State
The Electric State may be the Russo brothers' most challenging VFX project yet, but stars Stanley Tucci and Giancarlo Esposito say it's one of the easiest films they’ve ever done
Giancarlo Esposito and Stanley Tucci in The Electric State
Stars Stanley Tucci and Giancarlo Esposito say their new dystopian sci-fi movie The Electric State is more like our own reality than we might realize
Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt, and Ke Huy Quan in The Electric State
$320 million in the hole, the Russo brothers' new Netflix movie debuts to their worst Rotten Tomatoes score even though it's one of the most expensive films ever made
Latest in News
Jordan A. Mun looks at herself in a mirror in just a vest in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet screenshot
5 years after starting development, Neil Druckmann says Naughty Dog's new game Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is "still evolving and changing as we're making it"
Silent Hill f
After 2 years of silence, the next mainline Silent Hill game is getting a dedicated stream this week with "the latest news"
Original Xbox console
Former Microsoft exec says the first Xbox was killed early in favor of 360 because it was "losing money left right and center," but luckily "we could afford to hemorrhage cash"
A Monster Hunter Wilds character holding binoculars.
Despite Monster Hunter Wilds suffering monstrous performance problems on PC, it still outsold the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions in the US
Jordan A. Mun looks at herself in a mirror in just a vest in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet screenshot
The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann says Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet will also be about "being lonely," as if his zombie apocalypse wasn’t isolating enough: "I really want you to be lost"
A screenshot of Jordan drinking a soda during the reveal trailer for Intergalactic: The Hertic Prophet.
Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is "a game about faith and religion," which Neil Druckmann jokes will surely get less hate than The Last of Us 2