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problems·

Does Netflix pay out if you don't watch the content?

It also may make it more likely that Netflix will drop the content if it's not getting good enough numbers.

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I often wondered this. I don't believe it does. My guess is that royalties are paid on a per-use basis. Anyone know?

I really doubt there is any per-view payout. There would be no point in their constant content churn if they were able (or wanted to) negotiate per-view contracts.

The view numbers surely get used during contract negotiations, though. When a movie's contract runs out and Netflix needs to figure out how much they're willing to bid to renew it, they'll look at the view numbers as one factor in determining how much they're willing to bid.

So even if there isn't a per-view payout, I'm sure the view numbers do contribute to the studio getting more money.

My complete guess:

Netflix mass-negotiates content contracts with distributors for lump sums. The distributor then pays out one-time royalties from that lump sum.

My guess is similar, except that the distributor never actually pays out royalties; instead using Hollywood-accounting to funnel the extra money away into the contract for some captive film-rights service company owned by contacts and cronies.

You'd have to imagine Netflix does more than viewing numbers since it's not ads that makes them money but subscribers to the overall service.

If a show is getting press and social media talk then they probably value that higher since new subscribers is of very high value. Retention is a different problem and not as particular to one show.

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