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Streaming Shows With Strong Retention Still Face Cancellation
A new report compares how often television shows get renewed.
Broadcast networks renewed more shows in 2025 than major streaming services did.
About 65% of broadcast shows returned, compared with 44% of streaming shows.
Streaming services often look at how many viewers finish a show.
Luminate says that keeping at least half of viewers is a useful sign of success.
However, some shows that passed this mark were still canceled.
Wonder Man kept 52% of its viewers but was canceled after first being renewed.
The Waterfront kept 62% of viewers and was also dropped.
This shows that streaming companies use more than one rule when deciding which shows continue.
Broadcast networks renewed 65% of their 2025 output, compared with 44% across major streaming services.
Netflix had the highest average renewal rate among major streamers, renewing about 50% of its U.S. slate from 2022 to 2025.
Luminate identifies 50% audience retention as a useful streaming success benchmark, but several shows above it were canceled.
Wonder Man retained 52% of viewers over 12 weeks despite initially receiving a second-season renewal before being canceled.
The Waterfront recorded 62% retention, while unscripted streaming series had an overall renewal rate of about 38%.
- Who
- Luminate, broadcast networks, and major streaming services, including Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, Apple TV, and Peacock.
- What
- A Luminate report found that broadcast shows were renewed more often than streaming shows, while strong audience retention did not always prevent cancellations.
- Where
- The report covers U.S. scripted programming and major streaming services.
- When
- The report was released Friday and examines renewal data from 2022 through 2025, including 2025 output.
- Why
- Renewal decisions depend on factors including budgets, programming slots, viewership, audience retention, and individual platform standards.
Renewal Metrics Favor Broadcast
Streaming Decisions Remain Flexible
Why broadcast shows are renewed more often
Renewal Metrics Favor Broadcast
Broadcast networks have more limited budgets and programming slots, clearer viewership data, and annual scheduling deadlines that make renewal decisions more straightforward.
Streaming Decisions Remain Flexible
Streaming services release larger amounts of content and do not face the same annual scheduling pressure, so shows can remain in limbo or be canceled under less transparent conditions.
Whether retention guarantees renewal
Renewal Metrics Favor Broadcast
A retention rate of at least 50% can indicate that viewers stayed engaged through a series, making it a useful measure of streaming success.
Streaming Decisions Remain Flexible
Retention alone does not guarantee renewal: Wonder Man, On Call, and The Waterfront all exceeded the benchmark but were canceled or, in Wonder Man's case, canceled after an initial renewal.
Platform standards
Renewal Metrics Favor Broadcast
Some platforms, such as Apple TV and Peacock, appear willing to continue or evaluate shows at lower retention levels, particularly for prestige programming.
Streaming Decisions Remain Flexible
Different platform thresholds mean the same retention result can lead to different outcomes; The Studio had 28% retention and The Copenhagen Test had 33% while being identified among notable canceled series.
Key facts
- Broadcast renewal rate
- 65% of broadcast output was renewed in 2025.
- Streaming renewal rate
- 44% of series across major SVOD services were renewed in 2025.
- Retention benchmark
- Luminate identifies 50% audience retention as a useful streaming benchmark.
- Wonder Man retention
- The Disney+ series retained 52% of its audience over 12 weeks.
- The Waterfront retention
- The Netflix series had the highest reported retention at 62% during its first 12 weeks.
- Netflix renewal rate
- Netflix renewed about 50% of its U.S. slate on average from 2022 to 2025.
- Unscripted renewal rate
- About 38% of streaming unscripted series were renewed from 2022 to 2025.
Sources
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