How Netflix wins the streaming wars: it crunches subscribers’ data to tailor its services

The ‘secret sauce’ to Netflix’s winning recipe? It mines its own viewing data and customer behaviour to tailor its services for the viewer

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Knowing what its users want – from preferred genres to regional programming – has helped Netflix refine its winning recipe. Photo: TNS

Published: 6:45pm, 10 Jun 2024

Although its video streaming service sparkles with a Hollywood sheen, Netflix still taps its roots in Silicon Valley to stay ahead of traditional television and movie studios.

The company frequently reaches into its technological toolbox without viewers even realising it. It uses a few subtle twists on the knobs of viewer recommendations to help keep its 270 million worldwide subscribers satisfied at a time when most of its streaming rivals are seeing waves of cancellations.

Even when hit series like The Crown or Bridgerton have wide appeal, Netflix still tries to cater to the divergent tastes of its vast audience. One part of that recipe includes tailoring summaries and trailers about its shows to fit the interests of each viewer.

So someone who likes romance might see a trailer for The Crown highlighting the relationship between Diana and Charles, while another viewer more into political intrigue may be shown a clip of the queen in a meeting with then-British prime minister Margaret Thatcher.

For a film like Nyad, a lover of action might see a trailer of the title character during one of her epic swims, while a comedy fan might see a scene featuring banter between the two stars, Annette Bening and Jodie Foster.