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Streaming platforms such as Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max, Peacock, Paramount+ and Prime Video now compete for viewers alongside traditional television, and each closely-guards its own viewing figures. Nielsen, an independent audience-measurement firm long used to track TV ratings, publishes a twice-yearly report that gives a rare outside comparison across all these services using a single, consistent method: total minutes watched.

The report's top performers include newer streaming-only shows like Netflix's "Stranger Things" and HBO Max's medical drama "The Pitt", sitting alongside older, well-established series such as "Grey's Anatomy" and "The Big Bang Theory" that originally aired on conventional networks before finding large audiences on streaming. Unscripted formats, including reality and competition shows on Peacock and Paramount+, are tracked separately, reflecting how differently that genre performs compared with scripted drama and comedy.

These rankings matter to the industry because streaming services use viewership data to decide what to renew, cancel or invest in, and to attract advertisers. Because each platform normally releases only the figures that suit it, Nielsen's independent tally is one of the few tools allowing direct comparison of how services and shows are actually performing against one another.