Netflix Attracts 18.4 Million Viewers with BTS Live Stream, Expanding Its Live Content Portfolio

Netflix demonstrated the massive impact of global live content through a live broadcast of BTS’s Comeback event. The “BTS Comeback Live: ARIRANG” stream, which aired globally on the 21st of last month, attracted 18.4 million viewers worldwide. It ranked within the weekly top 10 in 80 countries and topped the charts in 24 nations. Netflix cited this achievement as a key example in its first-quarter shareholder letter released on the 16th.

In the shareholder letter, Netflix emphasized the BTS live stream by stating that “live event programs serve as examples of the significant influence certain content can exert.” During the same first quarter, Netflix broadcast over 70 live events. The company’s revenue for the first quarter reached $12.25 billion, a 16.2% increase from the previous year, while operating income rose to $3.957 billion, marking an 18.2% increase. The operating margin stood at 32.3%.

Sports live broadcasts also delivered notable results. The “2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC)” streamed in Japan attracted 31.4 million viewers, making it the most-watched program in Netflix’s history there. Japan saw the highest number of new subscribers during this period, contributing the most to subscriber growth among Netflix’s 190+ countries in the first quarter.

BTS’s musical success continued as well. After their Comeback performance, the music video for the title track “SWIM” from their fifth studio album “ARIRANG” surpassed 100 million views. Other tracks from the album also made it onto the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 for three consecutive weeks.

Netflix considers live events to be a crucial strategy for driving subscriber growth. As a result, it aired over 70 live contents alone in the first quarter and plans to expand its live content lineup in the second half of the year, including heavyweight boxing matches such as those between Tyson Fury and Joshua held in the UK.