Netflix sees strong Q2 performance, revenue hits $15 billion

“K-content lowers cultural barriers, boosts performance”

Netflix posted better-than-expected results for the second quarter of this year, largely driven by the global popularity of Korean content like Squid Game Season 3 and the animated film K-Pop Demon Hunters. According to the Q2 earnings report released by Netflix on July 17 (local time), the company reported revenue of $11.079 billion, a 15.9% increase compared to the same period last year. This slightly exceeded Wall Street’s average forecast of $11.07 billion, as compiled by financial data provider LSEG. Operating profit surged 45% year-over-year to $3.775 billion, with the operating margin climbing 6.9 percentage points to 34.1%. Driving this surprise performance was the continued rise of Korean content. Netflix highlighted Squid Game Season 3 and K-Pop Demon Hunters as standout titles among its Q2 releases.

According to Netflix’s three-month viewership data, Squid Game Season 3 racked up 122 million views. Upon release, it reached No. 1 in all 93 countries where Netflix tracks its Top 10 rankings. It became the first show ever to top the charts in every country during its debut week and achieved the sixth-highest viewership of any Netflix series to date. K-Pop Demon Hunters, an animated feature set in Korea and centered around K-pop - produced by Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures - garnered 80 million views. Other Korean series also showed strong performance, including Weak Hero: Class 2 (20 million views), The Square (18 million views), and A Taste of You (15 million views). A Netflix spokesperson commented, “Korean content played a major role this quarter. The language and cultural barriers around K-content have significantly diminished.” Meanwhile, Netflix has raised its full-year revenue forecast from $43.5–44.5 billion to $44.8–45.2 billion. The company cited a weaker U.S. dollar, solid subscriber growth, and strong ad sales as key drivers behind the upward revision.

(The Korea Daily, July 18, 2025)