Photo by mohamed_hassan from Pixabay
Around the world, Netflix has 137 million streaming subscriptions, and every last one of them at some point or another has wondered if a different country is getting a better deal. It is inevitable, we all as consumers wonder if the grass is greener on the other side and in some cases that can be true. Some users try VPNs that work with Netflix to test the waters and try the service in other regions, others simply accept what is available to them locally. So, let’s take a look at the different films and television programs available around the world.
USA vs. the World
Being the home of the streaming website and over 56 million of its subscribers, it can often be suggested the United States has more to offer its Netflix users than elsewhere. But, does the US get the best Netflix shows? Well, for starters, we should all acknowledge that quality is a subjective thing. For every person out there who enjoys watching a French romance, there is another who enjoys a sports documentary and someone else watching housewives of somewhere on reality tv.
But the real question here is, is the US getting more of a selection to watch than the rest of the world? And the answer is, it depends where you are. Japan actually tops the chart when it comes to number of films available to it with just under 800 more than the United States. However, the US does top all other countries when it comes to number of TV shows, but by a much smaller margin with the UK having access to 144 fewer titles.
So in total, the US does have access to more Netflix materials than most other countries. However Japan has the most, but why?
Photo by afra32 from Pixabay
Netflix Rights
First of all, before discussing why the US and Japan have more to watch than anyone else it is important to remember that the films and television programs don’t match up one to one. The US may have more TV shows than the UK as discussed above but that doesn’t mean the shows are the same. The reason for this difference is also explained in the answer to why some countries have more content than others on Netflix.
Apart from the television and film that it makes in-house, Netflix has to come to agreements with studios for the distribution of content. That means a studio distributor in the United States may have the rights to sell programming or a film that its counterpart in the UK or Canada doesn’t have. In addition to that, some studios will charge Netflix more money to stream certain films and TV in different countries.
Understanding that Netflix isn’t necessarily in total control of where it is able to distribute content is the first step in seeing why they are looking to increase how much of their own content is made. In fact, you will be seeing more and more original content from Netflix as they move to create a more universal approach to their programming.
