Binge-watching at work, public restrooms on rise, survey says
Binge-watching is no longer relegated to the family room, and Netflix viewers are chilling in some unusual places, according to a new study released by the streaming service.
The study found that 67% of its users are viewing in public — with 37% admitting to bingeing at work and 12% confessing to watching in public restrooms.
Last year, Netflix introduced the ability to download TV shows and movies directly to our devices, making bingeing fan favorites, like “Stranger Things,” “Narcos,” “Luke Cage” and more, easier than ever.
However, watching unabashedly does come with risks — that is, overthe-shoulder viewers.
In fact, 44% of those surveyed claimed they have caught someone eyeing their screen. Only 22% admitted to being embarrassed by the incident. After all, the survey did find that 11% of respondents had a series spoiled for them because they were snooping themselves.
It doesn’t stop there, though. The streaming giant — which conducted the survey between late August and early September — also found that one in 10 adults has missed a bus or train stop due to streaming, 22% have admitted to crying while watching in public and 35% had a stranger interrupt their show to start a conversation about it.
While the report didn’t indicate if those people were bothered by the interruption, Eddy Wu, the director of production innovation for Netflix said that “Netflixing in public has become a social norm.”