Netflix, the company that has continually shifted the way people enjoy movies and television shows over the last few years, is taking yet further steps to alter the entertainment landscape. First famous for shifting movie rentals to mail and then for offering inexpensive streaming services for a low monthly fee, it is now working to become a power player in television production.
These choices are creating noticeable changes in the television world. Its productions are motivating online competitors to follow suite, and The Atlantic Wire says that even cable networks are keeping Netflix in mind when making programming decisions.
Kevin Spacey on the “House of Cards” set image by MDGovpics via Flickr.
Netflix as Producer
Though movies were the founding material for the original Netflix, television has proved to be the bread and butter of the company. When a television show appears on Netflix, it is in the ideal format for public consumption. Users can stream episode after episode, commercial free, and get as much of a TV fix as they desire.
Netflix embraced this all-at-once appeal in recent production efforts. “House of Cards,” the newest season of “Arrested Development” and the recently released “Orange is the New Black” all premiered to Netflix subscribers as full seasons. The shows received generally favorable reviews, and have other streaming services shuffling to release their own exclusive shows to compete.
Focus on Quality
Derek Thompson at The Atlantic recently explained that this is the golden age of television, and how Netflix is picking up the torch from HBO. HBO was the first cable production company to focus on creating movie-quality series, a decision that sparked the shift from sitcoms and low-budget TV dramas to grandiose, fully realized productions that were equally as compelling as big-budget movies.
Everyone acknowledges that Netflix dominates the streaming marketplace, but it wants more. It’s current goal, says GQ, is to become as good as HBO at producing television series, before HBO becomes as good as Netflix at drawing in streaming subscribers. The fact that HBO is doing little to tackle the emerging streaming market – aside from offering its content to subscribers already buying cable packages – makes Netflix’s dreams appear achievable.
Cable Watching Netflix
This works out to the benefit of everyone, including cable and satellite vendors like install-direct-tv.com. Netflix is encouraging better television in a variety of ways, so much so that cable subscribers are seeing improvements in their own programming.
Cable production companies are actually tailoring productions with Netflix in mind. They encourage shows to have continuing story lines so the program will be desirable to Netflix audiences. Once can assume that if the quality of Netflix productions remains high, even HBO will need to keep up its game to remain competitive.
Streaming Revenue
Money talks, and Netflix puts a significant amount of money into the pockets of cable networks. The company pays all cable networks for the shows it streams, and these deals can be substantial. According the The Wall Street Journal, Netflix paid AMC around $1 million an episode for the streaming rights to “Mad Men.”
Lucky Sanchez – Lucky is a theatre major from the East Coast. Although hed love to end up writing Broadway reviews full time, he is happy to write about anything he can get his hands on in the entertainment world.
