Many people think that the biggest rivals of Netflix would be broadcasting companies like Amazon Video and HBO. However, in fact, Netflix is treating a popular online video game namely Fortnite, a product of Epic Games, as more of a competitor than others.
A letter revealed this surprising news with the fourth quarter results of Netflix thanks to Gl.biz. It also showed the screen time competition is not only among broadcasting companies. According to a recent report, Fortnite’s revenue reached US$2.4 million in 2018, which is likely to affect other popular streaming services.
A Netflix’s representative said that they competed with and lost to Fortnite of Epic Games more than the big broadcasting company, HBO. “There are thousands of competitors in this highly fragmented market vying to entertain consumers… Our growth is based on how good our experience is, compared to all the other screen time experiences from which consumers choose.” said the representative. In other words, Netflix sees its competition as anyone in the entertaining customer business, and eating up their spare-time hours in the process, which includes gaming hits like Epic Games’ Fortnite.
Netflix may lose its potential viewers due to successful games like Fortnite. However, the opposite side is probably right too, it is only on a smaller scale though. Some game developers are going to avoid launching a game on the day when a big series is broadcasting on Netflix. Certainly, whether you have got time to watch several episodes of a series, the effect would be temporary. However, if almost players chose Netflix instead of a newly-released game, it is likely to partly impact the revenue.
This competition is on for your free time.