📺 A Third of americans watch old series, ignoring new releases
According to a report by Digital i, American streaming platform users are spending an increasing amount of time watching "nostalgia" and older content.
The share of viewing time for series released more than 10 years ago has grown to 37% in the first half of 2025 (compared to 32% in 2021).
Content released two or more years ago consistently accounts for a minimum of 68% of all viewing time.
All but one of the titles in the Top 10 by total viewing hours are licensed series (not the platforms’ original projects).
The only original project in the Top 10 was “Stranger Things.” Although it trailed “Grey’s Anatomy” (3.5 billion hours) in total viewing hours (1.7 billion hours), it is the absolute leader in viewing hours per episode (an average of 49.4 million hours).
In the first half of 2025, 37% of the viewing time for old content (released before 2020) was dedicated to comedies.
