When the third and last season Squid Game It arrived on Netflix on June 27, marking the end of a show that captures the world’s fascinating and continues to be the biggest hit of streaming ever (Season 1 accounted for more than 2.2 billion hours in its first three months, more than any other Netflix show, while Season 2 added 1.3 billion hours). But just because the final round of fan favorite survival drama is approaching, that doesn’t mean global demand for Korean content will slow down anytime soon. If anything, the world's obsession with Korean drama, reality shows and movies will only intensify – Netflix bets on South Korea to play the next wave of global streaming.
For example, in recent days, Richb released the first original cartoon made in Korea. Lost in the starsa science fiction romance known as the “visual masterpiece” by Oscar-winning director Bong Joon Ho is in a futuristic version of Seoul and follows the astronaut with his musician boyfriend – Columbian. Separated 140 million miles, the couple evokes an international version of Studio Ghibli by helping the film achieve a near-perfect 95% rotten Tomato audience score.
Korean TV series Squid GameAt the same time, it is especially profitable for Netflix. According to Parrot Analytics, such titles have had Netflix streaming revenues worldwide since 2020.
Other recent Netflix Korean hits include glorya slow-burning vengeance drama starring the song Hye-kyo, a woman who bullies at school and retaliates against torture people as adults. The series, which debuted in the late 2022 first half, can be a tough watch that blends uncomfortable trauma scenes with social commentary, but the audience isn't enough. When the second half of the series declined in 2023, it immediately surpassed the global chart of the streamers. The ratings exceeded 400 million hours in just a few weeks.
This is another example of how Korean content on Netflix has developed into fares that can attract global audiences. According to Netflix Co-CEO Ted SarandosMost of Netflix's user base are now watching Korean content, and most Korean romantic drama audiences are like Meet me when I was 19 years old and Twenty-five twenty-one Actually lived outside South Korea.
More importantly: Not only are they popular on Netflix around the world, they are also important leverages for subscriber growth. “Korean content provides two key features for Netflix,” Ampere Analysis analyst Motohiko Ara told Observer. “This is highly fanatical, but also strengthens its presence [Asia-Pacific] area. ARA continues to point out that South Korea’s champions tend to be longer than non-korean TV series, with more than 44% of Korean TV shows, compared with 44% of the plot in the United States.
Also Read: Streaming's “Squid Game” Dilemma: Can non-English content drive subscribers and revenue?
In 2023, Netflix announced four years, $2.5 billion investment In Korean content, the bet to turn Korean storytelling into the cornerstone of its global strategy doubles. The result claims to be: By Ampere, Korean shows are now second only to our content when we watch on Netflix. In the second half of 2024, Korean content generated 7.7 billion views, accounting for 8% of all views on the platform. Last year, 85 of the top 500 non-US were included. The title on Netflix is ​​Korean.
It’s not just a prestige drama that drives the audience. although Squid Game: Season 2 topped Netflix’s global rankings at the end of 2024, watching over 619 million hours of other hits like reality dating performances Single hell and cooking competition Cooking Class War The scope of this type is also proven. The older champion in Korea Queen of Tears and Crashed on you It also continues to drive engagement, making Netflix powerful evergreen Korean content.
The most important thing is: Squid Game Wrapped up the last chapter, searching for the next Korean Sword Saint who is streaming, which may be based on the impossible success of dystopian blood, and the bloody mud of dystopians becomes a global obsession.
