Netflix prides itself on being a global service. It is investing heavily in localized content worldwide and is offering that content in all markets it serves.
I’ve noticed a marked increase in the amount of foreign content on Netflix’s U.S. streaming service.
Personally, I like some of this content, such as TV shows “Dark” from Germany, “The Rain” from Denmark and “3%” from Brazil. I watch those shows with English subtitles because I’m not a fan of dubbing.
Some U.S. Netflix subscribers don’t care for these shows, judging by comments on Twitter. They either don’t want to read subtitles or think the dubbing is poor.
Those users also express disappointment when discovering an interesting-looking show that turns out to be in a foreign language. Netflix mixes its foreign-language shows in with English-language shows in genre categories on its home screen.
While Netflix is making a ton of foreign-language content, its competition in the U.S. is focused on making English-language shows for American viewers. Those rival services include Hulu, Disney+, Apple TV+ and HBO Max.
When HBO debuted its critically acclaimed English-language series “Chernobyl,” I joked that Netflix likely would have made the show in Ukrainian and Russian with subtitles.
Netflix could be turning off a lot of U.S. subscribers with its plethora of non-English language movies and TV shows.
Last quarter, Netflix lost 126,000 U.S. streaming subscribers. It blamed the drop on recent price hikes and a lighter content release slate.
Netflix executives boast about making shows that perform well worldwide.
On a July 17 earnings call, Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos pointed to series such “La Casa de Papel” from Spain (known as “Money Heist” in the U.S.), “Sacred Games” from India and “Quicksand” from Sweden as being popular around the globe.
But how well do they play in Peoria?
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