Parrot Analytics, a research firm that focuses on the entertainment industry, recently put out a study entitled Settling the Netflix & HBO Debate. Netflix and Game of Thrones have crossed swords before—about a month ago, for example, Netflix claimed that one of its original shows was watched more than Game of Thrones, although it declined to mention which one. Parrot Analytics zoomed in on that issue, and measured how interested people were in watching Game of Thrones compared to how interested they were in watching any of Netflix’s original shows. According to the study, “espite being 3 months away from its next season release, Game of Thrones is still more popular than Netflix’s latest series in the majority of markets around the globe.”
It’s important to note that this study says nothing about how many people are actually watching these shows—both HBO and Netflix are cagey about their numbers—but rather how much they talk about wanting to watch them. Parrot Analytics looked at 53 countries and found that Game of Thrones was in higher demand than any of Netflix’s original shows in 39 of them.
According to the study, Marvel’s Jessica Jones currently carries the flag for the most-requested Netflix original, with Orange is the New Black, Daredevil, and House of Cards behind it.
There are 14 countries where a Netflix original was in higher demand than Game of Thrones. Here’s look at those numbers, as well as a handy-dandy downloadable PDF of the entire study.
In those places where a Netflix show comes out on top of Game of Thrones, Jessica Jones is clearly the show of choice.
As a fan of both HBO’s original content and the recent catalog of original shows that Netflix has put forth, I could see Netflix closing this gap. The streaming giant has new seasons of hit shows like Daredevil, Orange is the New Black, and Marco Polo on the way, as well as new programming like Luke Cage. Will any of those shows be able to knock Game of Thrones off its perch? Time will tell.