This should come as no surprise to film and TV fans, but Netflix spends a lot of money and releases a lot of content each year.
Just a few months ago, we reported that Netflix was planning on releasing almost 500 original programs in the last half of the year and that they’d probably spend $8 billion in 2018. Well, apparently that was a conservative estimate.
According to a new report from The Economist, the streaming service is expected to spend between $12 – $13 billion on content this year. To put that into perspective, that number is more than any studio spends on films or television programs that aren’t sports-related.
To really drive home these findings, the report breaks down the amount of “Netflix Original” films that the company will release in 2018. In a world where Warner Bros. releases 23 films (the biggest number from a major studio this year) and Disney (who makes all the money in the world) releases only 10 films, Netflix is poised to release an astounding 82 films in 2018. That’s more than three times WB and eight times Disney. To put it in other terms, imagine Disney released a new film each week in theaters. That’s over 50 films in a year, and still dozens less than Netflix.
On the TV side of the equation, it’s even more ludicrous. In 2018, Netflix will reportedly produce or procure 700 series. Of those 700 series, over 100 will be scripted dramas or comedies. Then you have the sheer onslaught of documentaries that the service has been gaining a reputation for, as well as the ridiculous amount of comedy specials. Historically, networks would focus on a dozen or more series each season. Netflix will be doing almost 10 times that.
But it’s working. As astronomical their stats are, and how implausible it feels, the business is booming more than ever. The streaming service has moved from the US to become a worldwide powerhouse and is showing no signs of slowing down. It’s hard to believe it was only six years ago when Netflix produced their first series, “Lilyhammer.”
