The popularity of Netflix in today’s society has led to the coining of a new term: The “Netflix Effect.” According to a 2019 article by Blake Morgan at Forbes, the term refers to when “a new series catapults an unknown actor to fame - overnight - a result of millions of people binge-watching a show.”
One of the reasons Netflix has become so popular for consumers, according to Morgan, is that the platform allows viewers to decide what type of content they want to watch. In addition, Netflix has been producing its own original shows that are popular among viewers.
In 2018, Netflix budgeted some $13 billion for content, with around 85% of that going toward original content. For example, the 2018 Netflix original movie "Bird Box" was viewed by 45 million accounts during its opening week.
Similarly, "The Queen’s Gambit," an original drama series, became Netflix’s most-watched scripted limited series after its release on October 23, reported Deadline.
The outlet notes that "The Queen’s Gambit" has been watched by at least 62 million households. The series stars Anya Taylor-Joy as chess prodigy Beth Harmon and is based on a novel of the same title by Walter Tevis. Set during the Cold War era, the show chronicles the life of Harmon, an orphan who struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, as she becomes the world’s greatest chess player.
In the wake of the show's debut, sales of chess sets have surged by 125%, the New York Times reported, citing market research company NPD. This suggests that Netflix has enormous potential as an advertising powerhouse.
“Manufacturers and retailers weren’t likely prepared for this increase in sales,” Juli Lennett, a toy industry analyst with NPD, told the Times. “So, if consumers want a chess set to give as a gift, I would highly recommend they buy it now before they sell out.”
In addition, one toy company, Goliath Games, revealed to NPR that sales of its chess sets have spiked by more than 1,000% since late October, compared to the same period last year.
"Our October sales for chess were up 178% over the same period last year," Mary Higbe, director of marketing at Goliath Games, told the outlet. “That's a big increase. But something else unexpected happened at the end of the month,” she added, noting that chess sales at the end of October went up by 1,048% following the release of "The Queen’s Gambit."
Although Netflix does not currently include commercials in its model and has said it will not introduce ads to the platform, some marketers believe ads could be a substantial revenue stream if the company decides to go down that path, Quartz explains.
