"The Squid Game", number one series in 94 countries 1:07
NEW YORK (CNN Business) -
"The Squid Game," a fictional drama from South Korea, is "Netflix's largest series to launch," the company said exclusively to CNN on Tuesday.
The dystopian series "Squid Games," in which contestants who need a lot of money play deadly childhood games to win cash prizes, has been viewed by 111 million accounts since it debuted on Netflix on September 17.
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To give that number some context, Netflix announced earlier this year that 82 million households watched the "Bridgerton" series in the first 28 days after its Christmas debut.
"The Squid Game" topped that number in less time.
The series ranks first on Netflix's top 10 lists in 94 countries around the world.
It is the first Korean series on the platform to reach number one in the United States.
The numbers speak to the size of the popularity of "The Squid Game" and the speed at which it took off.
However, the
rating
data for
Netflix - and all streaming services - comes with some important caveats.
For starters, these numbers are from Netflix and have not been vetted by any outside source.
Also, that 111 million figure doesn't mean that everyone watched the series from start to finish.
It is based on the Netflix metric of accounts that watch at least two minutes of the series.
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Regardless of Netflix's often opaque accounting of the popularity of its shows, the important context is that competition from the
streaming
giant
is getting fiercer by the day, and "The Squid Game" shows that Netflix remains in the spotlight. the top for a reason.
For investors, as long as Netflix continues to add subscribers, Wall Street is likely to remain happy.
"The Squid Game" has hit reality in a significant way, and word of mouth is the best means of attracting new subscribers and keeping current ones happy.
The series has also garnered rave reviews, achieving a 91% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
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Like many major
streaming
series
, "The Squid Game" has become a pop culture phenomenon.
The series has spawned memes and even Halloween costume ideas.
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The success of "The Squid Game" speaks to Netflix's ability to create a worldwide hit.
Netflix has 209 million subscribers and the company has worked to reach audiences on a global scale.
"When we started investing in Korean movies and series in 2015, we knew we wanted to create world-class stories for top Korean content lovers in Asia and the world," said Minyoung Kim, Netflix's vice president of content for Asia Pacific, excluding the India.
"Today, 'Squid Game' has gone beyond our wildest dreams."
"'Squid Game' gave [Netflix] more confidence that our global strategy is heading in the right direction," Kim told CNN.
CNN's Liz Kang contributed to this report.
Netflix