Netflix is the king. The giant. The behemoth among the streaming platforms. Like it or not, the streamer is definitely doing something strategically good, boasting more than 320 million paid subscribers across 190 countries.
A recent Forbes survey of 1,000 Americans reveals that Netflix is the most popular among streaming platforms, with 55% of respondents saying they use it. Moreover, its user interface (UI) is also the most popular, with 36% of users preferring it the most.
Amazon Prime Video’s UI comes as second with 14%, confirming a significant difference.
However, some Netflix moves have frustrated subscribers. For example, early in 2025, it raised prices across all plans. More recently, it removed casting from its mobile app to most TVs, including Chromecast, sparking customer outrage.
In January, subscribers raised multiple concerns on Reddit, calling for improvements.
Reddit users claim Netflix is prioritizing numbers over quality, but its subscriber base keeps growing.
Reddit users clash over Netflix’s content quality as frustrations rise
An ongoing Reddit debate, started by user kmaysu, has stirred controversy and a large part of the original post was removed by moderators. Currently, viewers can only see the following:
“Netflix cancelling masterpieces on CLIFFHANGERS but renewing trash like Emily in Paris is criminal.”
I recovered the full original post via the Wayback Machine, where the user further complained about Netflix’s decision to cancel shows such as “Mindhunter,” “The OA,” and “Lockwood & Co.,” leaving them “with unfinished stories and brutal cliffhangers.”
Kmaysu argued that subscribers should question whether it’s worth watching Netflix originals if they’re likely to be canceled.
Some users also suggested that Netflix’s algorithm “prefers shallow binge content.”
While it might seem like a simple debate over content quality, the thread received 5,700 likes and sparked over 980 comments. These numbers suggest that many subscribers agree, at least partially, with the statement made.
Where should Netflix draw the line on content quality?
The overall sentiment expressed in the Reddit thread largely supports the original post. Subscribers sound frustrated and express trust issues with the platform, feeling they shouldn’t gamble their time with a new Netflix series.
User Turbulent_Sir_1018 wrote: “I will NEVER forgive them for canceling Marianne. It was honestly the last time I bothered investing time and energy into something made by Netflix.”
Subscribers shared they are very disappointed that Netflix canceled other shows, including “The OA,” “Waterfront,” and “Santa Clarita Diet.”
Some users, like letthetreeburn, suggested unsubscribing, writing: “Cancel your subscription. I don’t mean this as a ‘you complain about capitalism but participate in it!’ but as a pragmatic…they’re streamlining, focusing on cheap and easy, cut corners after corners and I’m not enjoying, genuinely enjoying, anything I watch through them.”
Other users insisted that tastes vary, and that the majority of subscribers must not agree that “Emily in Paris” is trash, otherwise it wouldn’t be renewed. Or at the very least, regardless of quality, the show is just what subscribers need: “brain mush to throw on after a long day at work.”
While the merits of “Emily in Paris” can be debated, the number of subscribers watching it may not relate to its quality, which is precisely the issue many subscribers point out: Netflix is looking at the numbers more than anything else.
As a business dependent on viewership, Netflix must adapt to its audience’s preferences. However, the question still remains: Where should Netflix draw the line?
I recently covered actor Matt Damon’s concerns about Netflix’s movie production, discussed in the January 16 episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast.
Matt Damon raises concerns about a disturbing Netflix trend
Damon explained that traditional action films build toward a big finale, saving the largest set piece for the third act. Streaming platforms, however, often push for the biggest moment at the beginning to grab attention and favor repeated exposition, assuming viewers may be distracted while watching.
He also noted that streamers often encourage heavy plot repetition in dialogue, not because it serves the story, but because they assume viewers are multitasking and may miss key details the first time around.
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As someone who has a theater background, I am aware of the director’s struggles between delivering the artistic presentation he believes in and is passionate about, and going with the interpretation that will satisfy the audience.
After all, the show is for the audience, right? And, the theater can’t survive without it. Just like movie theaters, which have significantly declined in popularity over the last decade.
Industry data confirm it, with the global box office revenue rebounding to about $42 billion in 2024, while streaming platforms now generate roughly 48% of total film revenue, a significant rise from 32% in 2020. This highlights how digital viewing has reshaped the economics of film distribution, according to data from ReelMind.
Netflix still posts strong results, has big plans for future
From my experience, theaters would sometimes make a compromise: a show that lands between the original artistic view and what appeals to the masses. To keep its substantial subscribers base and grow it further, Netflix must do the same.
Its latest numbers show that, despite many frustrated subscribers, the platform keeps growing. What’s more, in its latest earnings results released on January 20, Netflix reported its fourth-quarter revenue increased 18% year over year, and the platform crossed 325 million paid global subscribers for the first time.
The company forecasts 2026 revenue at $51 billion, which is up 14% year over year.
During the earrings call, Netflix CEO Theodore Sarandos talked about how the company is no stranger to competition and change.
“Through that change in competition, we’ve grown into an entertainment company that is thrilling an audience that is now approaching nearly 1 billion people,” Sarandos said, according to the call transcript.
He was referring to the number of people who actually watch it in the same household under one subscription.
It is also important to note that Netflix’s plan to acquire Warner Bros. is quite strategic. With the acquisition, the streamer would also acquire prestige HBO/WB content, which could balance the content’s quality offering, hence resolving, at least partly, the “Emily in Paris brain mush” problem.
“We’re working really hard to close the acquisition of Warner Brothers Studios and HBO, which we see as a strategic accelerant. And we’re doing all this while we’re driving and sustaining healthy growth,” Sarandos also said.
Despite pushback from Netflix subscribers over content quality, with constant growth, 1 billion people still want to watch it. Given its strategic plans to expand its offering, the streamer confirms that it continues to rule the streaming world.
Related: YouTube TV faces growing backlash as users demand key upgrade