The Queen’s Gambit, starring Anya Taylor-Joy, is the Netflix’s most popular scripted limited series ever: according to the company, it made the Top 10 in 92 countries and ranked #1 in 63 countries, with 62 million member accounts tuning in to the show in the first 28 days.
The numbers grow if the data relating to the effect of the series on its viewers are added to the data just mentioned: according to various sources, the original novel, of which the series is an adaptation, entered the New York Times bestseller list, 37 years after its release.
According to NPD retail tracking service, chess set sales increased 87% in the US (up 250% on eBay), as did game-related research on Google, never higher in nine years.
It also seems that the number of new players on the chess site Chess.com has even quintupled, affirming the impact of the audiovisual product on the habits and consumption of its streamers.
The “scope” of the “chess” phenomenon obviously has significant economic implications and confirms the unstoppable flow of a “stream” that has now started and is capable of reaching the maze of a heterogeneous and changing cultural landscape.
