[opendtv] Re: With TV Viewing Changing, Networks Take Longer to Drop Shows
- From: Craig Birkmaier <brewmastercraig@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 28 Nov 2015 09:22:59 -0500
On Nov 27, 2015, at 10:13 PM, Monty Solomon <monty@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/19/business/media/with-tv-viewing-changing-networks-take-longer-to-drop-shows.html
In an industry where hits are in short supply, executives are becoming extra
cautious about canceling a show too soon.
An interesting article that took way too many words to explain the real reason
that shows are not getting cancelled...
The expansion of secondary distribution markets and the shift to on demand
consumption from linear broadcasts.
There are simply too many shows being produced today to see them all - as the
number of shows increases there is a natural tendency to develop content aimed
at niche rather than mass audiences - live sports is about the only mass
audience still making real money.
These paragraphs are the real eat of the story:
“If we get these shows to a good place and let them find solid viewership and
we get to sell them into syndication, they go into streaming, they go
everywhere and suddenly it’s good for the corporation,” Mr. Geller said. “And
we get paid on both sides.”
They get paid as a network because they have a hit, and then they’re paid for
international rights and for streaming rights if they sell to Netflix or
Amazon. A show like “Scream Queens,” with low same-day ratings but with solid
returns from delayed viewing, could develop enough of a niche following to
potentially appeal to a streaming service.
Yup. Actually almost any show will appeal to a streaming service. The only
issue is price. The limited number of hits drives the price up for popular
shows; the duds get thrown in to sweeten the package...
There is a parallel here to the UK article Bert posted recently about the early
days of Internet streaming. The Internet allowed smaller players to develop
niche services that could not succeed in the mass market world of broadcasting.
Now the mass market is a niche market, and the content owners are adapting to
the new realities...
A rating point is about 1.16 million homes.
A show with a .4 rating survives on a broadcast network - that's less than
500,000 viewers, a number which most popular cable networks exceed during prime
time.
But the congloms are making more than ever...
Regards
Craig
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