Netflix uses predictive analytics and machine learning to inform internal decisions about which original series and films to greenlight, license, or renew, by analyzing viewer behavior data to forecast a project's likely success.

Netflix's data science teams analyze historical viewing patterns, genre trends, audience demand by region, and metadata from past productions to generate data-informed projections for new content investments. The company has publicly stated that this analysis — including the famous example of greenlighting 'House of Cards' based on data about viewer affinities for political dramas, Kevin Spacey, and David Fincher — is used to inform but not replace human executive judgment. Netflix's data analytics group confirmed in published sources that the company uses a projection model to assess whether a proposed project fits 'certain parameters' based on similar programs' past performance.