LIVE B.C. seeks ban on using drugs in 'all public spaces,' shifting approach to decriminalization
The B.C. government is moving to have drug use banned in 'all public spaces,' marking a major shift in the province's approach to decriminalization.
"Squid Game" — a fictional drama from South Korea — is Netflix's "biggest-ever series at launch," the streaming company exclusively told CNN on Tuesday.
The dystopian series, in which contestants who are deeply in need of money play deadly children's games to win cash prizes, has been viewed by 111 million accounts since debuting on Netflix September 17.
To give that number some context, Netflix announced earlier this year that 82 million households watched "Bridgerton" in the first 28 days following its Christmas debut. "Squid Game" surpassed that number in a shorter amount of time.
The series is No. 1 on Netflix's Top 10 lists in 94 countries around the world. It's the platform's first-ever Korean series to reach No. 1 in the United States.
The numbers speak to the sheer size of "Squid Games'" popularity and the speed at which it took off. But Netflix's — and all streaming services' — ratings data comes with some important caveats.
For starters, these numbers are from Netflix itself and have not be vetted by any outside sources. Also, that 111 million figure doesn't mean everyone watched the series from start to finish. It is based on Netflix's metric of accounts watching at least two minutes of the series.
Regardless of Netflix's often opaque accounting of its shows' popularity, the important context is that the streaming giant's competition is growing fiercer by the day, and "Squid Game" shows Netflix remains on top for a reason.
For investors, as long as Netflix keeps adding subscribers, Wall Street will likely continue to be happy. "Squid Game" has hit the zeitgeist in a significant way, and buzz is the best means to attract new subscribers and keep current ones happy. The series has also earned great reviews, garnering a 91% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Like many top streaming series, "Squid Game" has become a pop culture phenomenon. The series has generated memes and even Halloween costume ideas.
The success of "Squid Game" speaks to Netflix's ability to craft a worldwide hit. Netflix has 209 million subscribers and the company has worked to reach audiences on a global scale.
"When we first started investing in Korean series and films in 2015, we knew we wanted to make world-class stories for the core K-content fans across Asia and the world," said Minyoung Kim, Netflix's vice president of content for Asia Pacific, excluding India. "Today, Squid Game has broken through beyond our wildest dreams."
"'Squid Game' gave [Netflix] more confidence that our global strategy is going towards the right direction," Kim told CNN.
The B.C. government is moving to have drug use banned in 'all public spaces,' marking a major shift in the province's approach to decriminalization.
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief complained to Air Canada about how staffers treated her and her ceremonial headdress on a flight this week, she says the airline responded by offering a 15 per cent discount on her next flight.
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.