The TV Column

Netflix's subscribers, programs killing networks

Netflix has announced Sept. 10 as the date to view all 10 new episodes of season 4 of "Longmire." The modern Western stars Robert Taylor. The first three seasons are already available for streaming.
Netflix has announced Sept. 10 as the date to view all 10 new episodes of season 4 of "Longmire." The modern Western stars Robert Taylor. The first three seasons are already available for streaming.

Let's face it, fellow baby boomers, those tech-savvy millennials just might be the future after all.

Now we know how our parents' "greatest generation" must have felt when we started elbowing our way into their stuff back in the '60s.

In this case, I'm talking about the way we watch TV. Increasingly, the millennials are "cutting the cord" on cable and watching television online and on their own schedules. It's the biggest thing in the TV industry since Ted Turner launched the first basic cable channel in 1976.

As Netflix pitches it to the younger folks, for one simple monthly subscription fee, "Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on nearly any Internet-connected screen. Members can play, pause and resume watching, all without commercials or commitments."

Traditional TV is scrambling not to be caught with its pants down.

Among all the on-demand Internet streaming service providers, Netflix is the elephant in the room. The outfit boasts 65 million members (42 million in the United States) in more than 50 countries, watching more than 100 million hours of TV programs and movies every single day.

That, friends, is a major player in the TV industry. Not bad for a little start-up that began in 1997 as a traditional DVD rental company.

As is the American way, Netflix had a good idea and ran with it. By 2010, the company's streaming service was booming. Proof of just how much: According to an April article in Variety, Netflix's first quarter 2015 value of more than $32 billion makes it worth more than CBS, Viacom and Discovery Communications.

In addition, Netflix's audience is on track to surpass the total viewership of NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox combined.

How does it do it? Compared to a monthly cable bill, Netflix is dirt cheap. Subscriber options begin at $7.99 a month. And, to get to our point today, Netflix is getting increasingly aggressive about providing original content.

If you make it -- and it's good -- they will subscribe. Or, if you have it and they can't get it anywhere else, they will come.

Examples: According to The Hollywood Reporter, Netflix paid $60 million for the exclusive rights to Brad Pitt's satirical black comedy War Machine. It has also shelled out a reported $500,000 per episode for the exclusive streaming rights to Friends. The cost will be about $118 million.

If you want to watch Friends online, you'll have to subscribe to Netflix.

The success of its original series House of Cards, Orange Is the New Black and Sense8 has encouraged Netflix to add more original series to the lineup (see below).

And being the white knight that rides in to save network-canceled shows has added to the subscriber list.

Among network-canned series that found new life on Netflix are Arrested Development, The Killing, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Trailer Park Boys and Longmire.

If my email is any indication, the addition of Longmire brought Netflix a passel of new subscribers from these parts. And now we finally have a starting date for the modern Western that was kicked to the curb by A&E in 2014 after three seasons.

All 10 episodes of Season 4 will be available at 2:01 a.m. Sept. 10. I've previewed the first two and can say that fans of the series will not be disappointed.

Netflix has sworn me to secrecy or I'd plop in a "Spoiler Alert" here and tell you who dies. Wait. Maybe nobody dies. Maybe they all die.

The series, starring Australian Robert Taylor as laconic Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire, will pick up shortly after the cliffhanger scene we saw at the end of Season 3.

But what about new shows? What does Netflix have in the works to lure more millennials (and the rest of us) into the fold? The outfit plans to spend $5 billion on content next year, with about 10 percent going to original programming. Here's a partial list.

Fuller House: A reboot of the beloved ABC comedy featuring most of the original cast. Premiere date to be announced.

Master of None: A sitcom starring comic Aziz Ansari is set for Nov. 6.

Chelsea Does: A four-film documentary series featuring Chelsea Handler exploring marriage, racism, technology and drugs.

With Bob and David: Four-episode sketch comedy starring Bob Odenkirk and David Cross.

Marvel's Jessica Jones: Starring Krysten Ritter and David Tennant.

A Very Murray Christmas: The December special stars Bill Murray and a huge A-list guest cast (including George Clooney).

F Is for Family: The animated comedy stars Bill Burr, Laura Dern and Justin Long,

In addition, the animated BoJack Horseman has been renewed for a third season, 10 new comedy specials will air before the end of the year and six new original children's shows arrive aimed at selling dolls.

The TV Column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Email:

mstorey@arkansasonline.com

Weekend on 08/27/2015

Upcoming Events