Korean content, including the 'Squid Game' series, dominated Netflix in the first half of the year.
On the 18th, Netflix released its viewing status report for the first half of the year (Engagement Report).
In the first half of 2025, the total viewing time on Netflix reached approximately 95 billion hours. In particular, popular Netflix original works continue to attract great popularity even years after their release. According to the viewing status report, nearly half of the viewing hours for original content were for works released in 2023 or earlier. In fact, popular Netflix originals such as 'Orange Is the New Black,' 'Ozark,' and 'Money Heist' recorded over 100 million viewing hours each in the first half of 2025.
# Rise of Korean culture and K-POP popularity 'Cultural barriers are being lowered'
In the first half of this year, various genres of Korean content, including series and animation, were highlighted. First, 'Squid Game' achieved the remarkable feat of placing all of its seasons, 2 and 3, within the top 10 most popular series of the first half of the year. In just the first half of this year, all seasons collectively recorded a staggering 230 million views. 'Squid Game' Season 3, released on June 27, recorded about 72 million views by June 30, the end of the reporting period.
For reference, 'Squid Game' Season 3 maintained its number one position in all 93 countries that tally Netflix's TOP 10 immediately after its release. It is the first title to achieve number one in all countries during its debut week, and 'Squid Game' continues to set astonishing records.
'When Life Gives You Tangerines,' set against the backdrop of Jeju Island, depicting the adventurous life of 'Aesooni' and 'Gwanseoki,' recorded about 35 million views in the first half of the year, gaining significant popularity among global audiences. Additionally, webtoon adaptations set in the Korean medical community and schools, such as 'The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call' (34 million), 'Weak Hero Class 1' (22 million), and 'Weak Hero Class 2' (20 million), also received great love on Netflix in the first half of the year.
The animated film 'K-POP Demon Hunters' achieved a global phenomenon with its Korean setting and K-POP theme, recording around 37 million views in just the first month since its release. Immediately after its release, music from the fictional K-POP bands featured in the content topped major global charts like Spotify, Apple Music, and iTunes. The soundtrack is currently ranked as the highest among film music on the 2025 Billboard 200.
According to this report, the proportion of Korean content for which Netflix owns the intellectual property (IP) remains below 15%, unchanged from last year. This shows that Netflix is expanding the global reach of diverse Korean content through flexible methods such as originals, pre-buys, and licensing.
# Strength of non-English content 'Proving the value of Netflix localization'
Like last year, this year's first-half viewing status report also indicated that non-English content accounted for more than one-third of total viewing hours. Notably, 10 out of the 25 most-watched series in the first half were non-English works. This aligns with Netflix's belief that 'good stories can come from anywhere' and reflects its investment philosophy of presenting top-quality content in collaboration with local creators from various countries.
European series, including the UK's 'Adolescence' (145 million), Denmark's 'Secrets We Keep' (34 million), and Sweden's 'The Åre Murders' (33 million), also gained popularity in the first half of the year.
# Continued genre diversity to provide varied viewing experiences
In the first half of the year, Netflix focused on expanding viewing experiences by providing diverse content ranging from series and films to animation.
Beginning in January, WWE, which started broadcasting in some regions including North America and Europe, has been providing fans with unique enjoyment through live shows every week. The entire event, including WWE RAW, recorded 280 million viewing hours during the first half of the year. In the animation genre, 'Sakamoto Days Season 1' (24 million), 'Naruto' (combined season total of 45 million), and Studio Ghibli classics 'Spirited Away' and 'Howl's Moving Castle' each recorded 6 million views.
Besides 'K-POP Demon Hunters,' kids and family content has also made strides. 'Ms. Rachel Season 1' (53 million), the French animated feature 'Asterix & Obelix: The Big Fight' (16 million), and 'Gabby's Dollhouse' have recorded a total of 108 million views across all seasons.
In the comedy genre, 'Running Point' (41 million) and 'The Four Seasons' (39 million) have garnered worldwide love.
The global viewing status report, which tracks members' viewing trends, reveals viewing hours and numbers for all original and licensed works with at least 50,000 hours watched each half-year (total viewing hours ÷ total running time, rounded to the nearest 100,000). Netflix has been releasing weekly TOP 10 lists, as well as complete global viewing status reports biannually since December 2023.
[Photo] Provided by Netflix.
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