In a historic development for South Korea’s OTT platform industry, TVING has surpassed Netflix in terms of total viewing hours. This success comes after the broadcast of the last episode of the series “Lovely Runner” on May 28, with Byeon Woo-seok and Kim Hye-yoon in the lead roles. The final episode seems to have significantly boosted viewing hours on the platform.
TVING recorded 2 hours of viewing, surpassing Netflix which had 500 hours, with a notable difference of 010 hours. On the same day, TVING also observed a remarkable increase in its Daily Active Users (DAU), reaching 2 million, closing in on Netflix which had 408 million DAU.
The gap between the two platforms is the lowest ever among all South Korean native OTT platforms. A TVING official commented on the feat, saying: “We have realized that high-quality content is our main competitive advantage. This demonstrates that it is possible to compete with Netflix, considered an ‘impenetrable wall’, thanks to well-designed content. »
“Lovely Runner” topped the most-watched series charts in Korea during its broadcast. Broadcast from April 8 to May 28 on tvN, and available exclusively on TVING, this series captured the public’s attention with its captivating story integrating elements of romantic comedy and time travel, alongside broadcasts of Korea Baseball League (KBO).
The series, which recorded average domestic ratings of 5,8% according to Nielsen Korea, also topped the TV-OTT topicality survey in the drama category. Byeon Woo-seok, one of the main actors, topped this poll in both the drama and non-drama categories, thanks to his participation in the variety show “You Quiz on the Block.”
“Lovely Runner,” adapted from the web novel “Tomorrow’s Best” by author Doong Doong, tells the story of Im Sol, a fan, played by Kim Hye-yoon, who gets an unexpected chance to go back in time to save his idol Ryu Sun-jae, played by Byeon Woo-seok, with a tragic destiny.
Besides TVING, “Lovely Runner” is also available to a limited international audience on Viu and Viki, as well as U-Next in Japan and Vidio in Indonesia.
Could this turnaround for TVING redefine the competitive landscape of OTT platforms in South Korea? Only time will tell.
Have you ever seen “Lovely Runner”?