Netflix and Binge? Exploring New Cultures of Media Consumption

This study sought to identify shifts in audience media use and consumption. The study was further concerned with identifying the various ways in which thinking about audiences has shifted within policy discourses, and specifically in the EU audiovisual policy directives. The rationale behind this study was informed by the hypothesis that there is a potential disconnect between the policy and the practices of audiences. The project used a mixed methodology combining 164 weekly media diaries and 7 focus group discussions with users mostly in the 20-55 age category. YouTube and Netflix emerged as the two preferred media for video consumption, while the patterns and rhythms of this consumption followed the rhythms of everyday life and its requirements and practical limitations. The findings further identified three new or underexplored motivations for media use: instrumental, educational and aesthetic. Finally, media audiences emerge as oriented towards interpersonal, social and public media use. The main insight for policy is that audiences operate socially and not individually and that media have expanded in almost all domains of life, from work to aesthetic appreciation.