Orange Is The New Binge: A Weekend With Netflix

In case you’ve been living under a rock, Season 2 of “Orange is the New Black” was released on Netflix on Friday, June 6. By Sunday, June 8, I had watched the entire season. Yes, I spent the whole weekend sitting in front of my television, completely engrossed in the world of Piper Chapman and the wacky, hilarious, sometimes downright scary inmates of the fictional Litchfield Women’s Penitentiary. Once I had plowed through all thirteen and a half hours of the season, I was left with a void knowing I would have to wait another year to pick up on the rest of the story. The season was entirely engrossing, and definitely lived up to all the hype and excitement surrounding its release.  However, I wish I had slowed down just a bit and planned my viewing to last throughout the summer instead of one lazy weekend.

When Netflix releases an entire season at a time, it really is impossible not to binge watch. Most people probably don’t watch the entire season in one sitting, but it’s becoming more and more popular to watch two, three or four episodes in a row. Netflix basically created the concept of binge watching, and in the process they completely changed the face of television programming. Their original series are all specifically created for multi-episode viewing. The content is lined up with the new norms of viewer control. Ted Sarandos, the Chief Content Officer of Netflix explains, “Netflix has pioneered audience choice in programming and has helped free consumers from the limitations of linear television.” Consumers can now choose when and in what quantity they want to watch.

Netflix partnered with cultural anthropologist Grant McCracken recently, and in a study found that 61% of online viewers binge on their shows. Meaning they watch at least two or three episodes back-to-back in one sitting every few weeks. They also found that 73% of viewers feel positively about binge watching.

Television has always been a way for people to escape the stresses of their daily lives. But instead of the empty-mindedness of flipping through channels, Netflix encourages viewers to be active in choosing when and how much they want to watch. This is more of an engaging experience, where people are getting more emotionally involved in the world of a show, the plot lines and characters. People enjoy the escapism of watching multiple episodes of a great TV show. 79% of viewers said watching several episodes of their favorite shows at once actually makes the shows more enjoyable. And the majority of people say that watching TV shows on their own schedule is their preferred way to watch.

There are a few downsides to the Netflix television model. While there is a large buzz factor when a season is released on Netflix, that buzz usually dies down after a couple of weeks once most of the viewers have gotten through the season. With regularly scheduled programming, the anticipation of each new episode adds to the enjoyment of the show. Plus, people constantly talk about the show week after week. I definitely won’t be talking about “Orange is the New Black” every week, there’s only so much to say about that amazing finale! Which brings me to the other disadvantage of bingeing, the spoilers! Once the whole season is released, you run the risk of finding out the ending from a speedy binge-er who wants to discuss and critique every aspect of the finale. Long gone are the days of everyone experiencing a suspenseful season finale at the same time.

As long as Netflix keeps creating their addictive original content series, I say binge watching is definitely here to stay. Now on to my next mission: catching up on “House of Cards.” No spoilers please!