Netflix Testing Totally New Genre Set to Premiere at the End of the Year in Big Change

By Daniel S. Levine

Netflix is testing out a new genre with its subscribers: fitness and workout videos. The streamer is teaming up with Nike to launch 30 hours of Nike Training Club videos on Dec. 30, just in time for anyone who has "getting fit" on their list of New Year's resolutions. The first set of videos was already created by Nike, so this is strictly a test from Netflix to see how popular this content is with its subscribers.

The first five programs will be released on Dec. 30, with additional courses coming throughout the next year, reports Variety. The initial wave will include Kickstart Fitness with the Basics (13 episodes); Two Weeks to a Stronger Core (seven episodes); Fall in Love with Vinyasa (six episodes); HIT & Strength with Tara (14 episodes); and Feel-Good Fitness (six episodes). Eventually, Netflix subscribers will have access to over 90 Nike Training Club workouts, totaling over 30 hours.

The programs will be available to all Netflix subscribers in 10 languages. There are also options across several workout types, lengths, and intensities serving different fitness levels. Netflix is adding a custom Nike collection tab for easy access to the videos.

This is a big test run for Netflix since the Nike videos have already been produced. The streamer hopes it can elbow into a space Peleton carved out in recent years, with its trainers becoming celebrities. Cody Rigsby even competed on Dancing With the Stars, while Jess King joined the Sex and the City sequel series And Just Like That. If the Nike videos are hits for Netflix, subscribers could expect more fitness content in the future.

While Netflix is dipping its toe in the fitness video genre, there is one realm it is staying away from. Earlier this month, co-CEO Ted Sarandos said the company is still not interested in adding live sports at the moment. That goes against the grain, as rivals Apple TV+ and Amazon's Prime Video have already signed deals with major sports leagues to stream live games. "We're not anti-sports, we're just pro-profit," Sarandos said at the UBS Global TMT Conference in New York City. He pointed out that 165 million households watched Squid Game without "having to follow the Super Bowl." Netflix is planning its first live-stream show though, with Chris Rock agreeing to do a live stand-up special for the streamer in 2023. 

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