Netflix loses over 50% of top-show viewers season to season, MediaPost argues

July 27, 2026 · mediapost.com

More than 50% of viewership evaporates season to season on Netflix's top shows, the MediaPost Research Intelligencer column notes, and the proposed fix is program tune-in advertising delivered through linear TV. Netflix's own ad inventory is scarce and commands high CPMs, and buying spots on rival streaming services or connected TVs runs into similarly steep, competitive pricing, the column argues. eMarketer figures show Netflix subscribers watch 2.5 hours of linear TV daily in the U.S., letting data-driven linear platforms reach tens of millions of them each week in cohorts segmented by content, time of day and prior viewing behavior. The column pegs the cost of that targeted linear reach at roughly one-third of comparable streaming or smart-TV rates, measured by cost per converted viewer.

Streaming services chasing renewal viewership face the same math Netflix does: original-service inventory is thin and expensive, and rival CTV placements cost just as much. Data-driven linear TV buys aimed at narrow, previously engaged cohorts give planners a cheaper lever for tune-in campaigns, provided they can find and price that inventory at the granularity the column describes. Nielsen Gauge data showing linear TV still carrying half of all U.S. viewing time, and 85% of ad viewing time, makes the case that tune-in budgets built only around streaming and CTV leave reach and efficiency on the table.