500 Million Hours Watched Worldwide
Revenue Expected to Exceed 1.5 Trillion Won
'Squid Game Season 2 (Squid Game 2)' was watched for nearly 500 million hours worldwide, making it the most viewed content on Netflix in its first week of release. There are also projections that Squid Game Season 2 will generate at least 1.5 trillion KRW in revenue.
On the 1st, Yonhap News cited the media research institute K-EnterTech Hub, reporting that Season 1, which had a production cost of about 25 billion KRW, generated approximately 1 trillion KRW in revenue. This means the profit margin was about 40 times the production cost.
The production cost for Season 2 increased. It cost about 100 billion KRW, four times that of Season 1, but foreign media reviews on the content quality were somewhat mixed.
However, viewer response was enthusiastic. According to Netflix’s official site 'Netflix Top 10,' during the fourth week of December (23?29), the original series 'Squid Game 2' recorded 487.6 million hours of viewing time. Dividing this by the total runtime (7 hours 10 minutes) results in approximately 68 million viewers, ranking first in the non-English TV category and recording overwhelming viewing hours compared to the English TV category and both English and non-English film categories during the same period.
This is the highest viewing time based on the first week of release, breaking the previous record of 448.73 million hours set by the predecessor 'Squid Game Season 1' in the fourth week of September 2021 (20?26). On a weekly basis, it ranks second all-time, following the 571.76 million hours set by 'Squid Game 1' in the first week of October 2021 (September 27?October 3).
K-EnterTech Hub estimated the expected revenue for Season 2 to be at least 1.5 trillion KRW by applying the trend from Season 1. Although it may not reach the profitability of Season 1 (40 times the production cost), it is analyzed that a minimum of 10 times the production cost in revenue is expected.
This is also influenced by the fact that Season 2 achieved the number one spot in TV show viewership ratings in 93 countries within just two days of release. This is much faster than the eight days it took for Season 1 to reach number one.
There are also projections that revenue could surpass that of Season 1. This estimate takes into account that Netflix’s 'Stranger Things' and major Hollywood content have maximized profitability from Season 3 onwards. From Season 3 and beyond, revenue increased further through subscriber acquisition and retention, merchandising partnerships with other brands, and theme park attractions.
Meanwhile, the U.S. business magazine Forbes recently reported that based on social media data, Season 2 is expected to be as successful as Season 1. Forbes conducted an in-depth analysis of English subtitles per episode, highlighting Korean cultural elements such as the meanings of 'Noona' and 'Oppa,' as well as Korean traditional games like 'Ddakji game,' 'Hexagonal pentathlon,' and 'Round and round.'
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
