‘Orange Is the New Black,’ ‘House of Cards’ help Netflix reach milestone

Netflix is a monster, but what you may be surprised to know right now is just how big of a monster it really is.

The company announced on Monday that they just surpassed 50 million subscribers, which is the sort of substantial milestone that has to make your jaw hit the floor at least a little bit. This is as huge of a follower base as many cable networks have, but the difference here is that people pay specifically for this, and can watch whatever they want virtually whenever they want.

We know that the array of movies that the service provides is a big reason for its appeal, but we do also have to credit right now their library of original shows as a big stepping stone. While the numbers for “Orange Is the New Black,” “House of Cards,” “Arrested Development,” and others have never been released publicly, these shows that the service has quality programming that it puts out there right now that are so good, people want to subscribe just for them. These are not afterthoughts, and while Amazon and Hulu are getting there, we don’t quite feel right now like they are actually in this same place yet with either of their services.

Of course, the big thing for Netflix right now is simply that they still have quite a ways to go even still before they’ve hit their peak, and there are more originals on the way. The service has a Chelsea Handler talk show coming that is designed to be perfect for time-shifted viewers, and also the fourth and final season of “The Killing.”

What’s your reaction to this news, and do you cite the original programming for Netflix as a reason for its success? Share below, and click here if you want to subscribe to something else in our official newsletter.

Photo: Netflix