Can the analysis of ready-made data be the basis for investing millions?

Who hasn't heard of the television hit "House of Cards"? The series has been breaking popularity records since its inception in 2013. The story of the ruthless Francis Underwood, played by Kevin Spacey, has found admirers worldwide. The idea for the series was influenced by a very thorough analysis of available data (#bigdata).

Netflix analyzed approximately 30 million VOD video streams per day, paying particular attention not only to what users watch most frequently, but also to the moments they pause and replay, which scenes they return to, and so on. Next, they analyzed comments about the films and series posted on social media (Facebook and Twitter). This allowed them to determine which scenes, storylines, and character types resonated most with viewers and were most likely to achieve box office success. All of this led to the creation of a script that was inherently engaging and evoked strong emotions.

Based on the correlation between VOD views and Facebook page likes, it was determined that fans of this genre appreciated David Fincher and were very keen to watch films starring Kevin Spacey. It was also discovered that people with this taste enjoyed the BBC miniseries "House of Cards" broadcast in late 1990. It was based on in-depth data analysis that the director was selected, the lead role was cast, and the title and premise of the series were developed.

Sounds impressive, right? The producers were so confident in their conclusions that they immediately invested a huge amount of money in the series. The first 13 episodes reportedly cost a whopping $100 million, making House of Cards the most expensive series ever produced for online broadcast. What's more, Netflix ordered two seasons of the series at once, which was also a first. Well, Netflix wasn't wrong. As Kevin Spacey announced at the conference, the company calculated that for the series to be profitable, it would need to attract an additional 565,000 new users to the platform. Since 2013, when the first episode was released, Netflix has gained 17 million new viewers!

Since investing in data analysis brought the expected results, and even exceeded them, the company fully focused on the big data approach.

Big Data can be a true key to success. There are a growing number of application examples, even outside the entertainment industry. It's worth considering effective analysis of already collected data; this approach is increasingly used, including in building customer experiences and new customer service models.

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