13 crazy data statistics from SVOD services this year

SVOD services track every pause, skip, and late-night replay, turning our viewing habits into tidy spreadsheets that reveal more than most of us would admit. The numbers pulled together by Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu over the years paint a portrait of people seeking comfort, distraction, and the occasional all-night marathon. Some of the most memorable data points surfaced around 2017 and 2018, and they still offer a snapshot of how audiences behaved when streaming felt brand new. Here are 13 data points that stood out at the time.

The most popular day for global Netflix bingewatching was the January 1, 2017

Meanwhile, in the US the most popular day for a major Netflix ‘n’ Chill sesh was January 2, 2017. Presumably because most US citizens were still too busy partying it up on New Year’s Day to deal with a bingewatch of Stranger Things. Later reports show Sunday emerging as the bigger binge day overall, with average viewing stretching to 9.2 hours in some studies, though New Year’s remains a reliable spike for many viewers.

Subscribers watched an average of 60 movies on Netflix in 2017

Which balances out to at least one movie per week – probably for a sloppy date night on the couch. Multiple summaries through 2025 still reference roughly the same annual movie count, though Netflix itself now emphasizes billions of hours viewed rather than individual titles.

Somebody abused Netflix horrifically to rewatch a Pirates of the Caribbean movie

In 2017, an American set the record for the highest global rewatch by streaming Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl 365 times. We can only hope that person runs some sort of a pirate themed bar or party business and simply had it playing in the background.

A whole bunch of people went crazy for A Christmas Prince on Netflix

A little while after the trashy Netflix Originals movie premiered, the streaming giant took to Twitter to joke, “To the 53 people who’ve watched A Christmas Prince every day for the past 18 days: Who hurt you?” We don’t doubt that data and frankly admire these crazy bingewatching heroes. Live your truth, ladies and gentlemen!

A viewer in Antarctica watched a whole season of Shameless on Netflix in less than 24 hours

This is cool and all, but come on – who hasn’t devoured an entire season of something in roughly one day?

The devices people watch Netflix on vary around the world

According to Netflix data, people are more likely to watch Netflix on phones in India, South Korea, and Japan, while television sets are more popular with Australian, South American, and US customers. People in Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia prefer tablets, while Eastern Europe prefers to use the SVOD service on their desktop and laptop computers. Mobile viewing has continued to climb since then, with short-form platforms competing for the same pockets of attention.

Inexplicably, The Grand Tour is one of Amazon Prime’s most popular shows

The British driving show about three cocky old white dudes with jeans hiked up to their armpits has racked up more than 1.5 million streams by Prime members globally (and counting). The series also proved effective at driving new Prime sign-ups during its early seasons.

Yet Good Girls Revolt flopped in a major way

Meanwhile, the feminist historical drama starring Anna Camp and Genevieve Angelson managed to only achieve 52,000 first streams.

People were desperate for comedy on Hulu in 2017

2017 was a difficult year for everyone in the US for reasons that we don’t have to rehash, and according to Hulu’s data, that was evident in the viewing stats. Americans watched 36% more comedy movies than they did in 2016, but the increase in chuckles wasn’t limited to movies. TV shows like It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The Goldbergs, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and Parks and Recreation also enjoyed a notable increase in streams compared to 2016, with Black-ish leading the pack with a staggering 104% increase in streams.

When it comes to Hulu, gender is over

Apparently, men and women share similar viewing patterns on Hulu (upswing starting at 6-7pm EST and peaking at 9pm EST) and they also share device preference (favoring living room streaming devices, followed by computers, tablets, and phones). It’s almost as though gender is irrelevant and men and women have more in common than people might care to admit!

People are fucking obsessed with Daddy’s Home

In its viewing statistics report, Hulu asked: “Is there a more irresistible pairing than Ferrell and Wahlberg? The data says ‘no, there is not.’” Daddy’s Home was watched more than 12 million times in 2017, which makes us want to sit down and re-evaluate humanity a little.

People went nuts when ER debuted on Hulu

The iconic medical drama landed on January 14 and marked the first time the George Clooney and Julianna Margulies starring show had been made available on any streaming platform. Naturally, this meant the show debuted as one of the top five most viewed programs on Hulu. Within its first week of launch, nearly half of the viewers who binged the entirety of the 10-episode third season did so in 24 hours. The run also pulled in a younger audience than the original network broadcast ever reached.

Apparently, Rick and Morty fans love a good solid cry

Hulu data reveals that 40% of Rick and Morty viewers also love to get devastated while watching This is Us and feel utmost misery while watching The Handmaid’s Tale. That reveal isn’t too surprising when you consider how dramatic, deep, and genuinely emotional Rick and Morty can be with its storytelling and how every now and then it can unexpectedly make you blubber.

Binge-watching habits evolve with weekly releases

Netflix shifted from 89% all-at-once viewing in 2024 to 68% in 2025 as the platform tested weekly drops on select titles. Viewer drop-off between seasons now runs between 30 and 70 percent for many shows, while YouTube edges Netflix in some daily viewing time metrics. The old marathon model still exists, but the data shows audiences adapting to staggered schedules.

Global streaming time surpasses traditional TV

Nielsen recorded the first year streaming viewing exceeded combined broadcast and cable hours in the US in June 2025. Netflix alone accounts for a significant share of total viewing time, underscoring how SVOD has moved from novelty to default for millions of households.

Comedy remains a streaming comfort genre

Hulu reported notable comedy increases in 2017, and broader industry data continues to show humor as a resilient category across platforms. Viewers still turn to familiar laughs during uncertain periods, whether through new originals or catalog standbys that hold steady year after year.

Device preferences reflect regional lifestyles

Mobile streaming is projected to exceed 60 percent of consumption in some 2025 forecasts, though regional differences persist. Phones remain dominant in parts of Asia, while living room screens hold stronger in markets where shared viewing is still the norm.

Nostalgia titles drive unexpected streaming hits

ER quickly became a top performer on Hulu and drew new younger viewers around age 27. Many catalog titles continue to generate strong binges today, proving that library content can still command attention long after its original run ends.

The 2017 and 2018 numbers offer a time capsule of how audiences behaved when SVOD first became a daily habit. Some patterns have shifted with new release strategies and device trends, while others, like the pull of comfort comedy or the appeal of a good rewatch, remain remarkably consistent. SVOD platforms keep refining what they measure, yet the core impulse to disappear into a screen for hours at a time shows no sign of fading.