Netflix Culture: The Effects of Netflix on Society

Replacing Television

Before you could stream TV shows and movies online, you had to wait until a television channel aired that show or movie in order to watch it. Now that there is online streaming, many would find this waiting method inconvenient.

With Netflix expanding its stock of TV shows and movies, cable has little to offer. Who would wait for a movie to come on at 9:00 P.M. when you can watch it on your own time?

According to the Harvardpolitics.com article "The Netflix Effect: Television Ratings in the Internet Age", the answer is: not many people. 

"The very definition of a hit has changed drastically. The 2015-2016 season claims few blockbusters, and even those hits hardly amass the viewership that past successes garnered. NBC’s Blindspot—one of this year’s top shows, according to Slateboasts an audience of eight million; in 1995, The Single Guy pulled in 20 million viewers and was still canceled after two seasons. According to NBC, Blindspot’s ratings double when mobile streams and delayed DVR viewings are added, but even an audience of 16 million is lower than the 20 million mark that didn’t cut it for The Single Guy."
-Harvardpolitics.com

These numbers show that Netflix is gradually cutting into viewership of cable networks. Within a short couple of years after becoming mainstream, Netflix has stolen millions of people away from major cable networks like NBC. In just a couple more years, will cable dwindle down to nothing? Will cable become strictly advertisement? Maybe all of the major cable networks will cave in and start releasing all their shows and films solely from Netflix.

 Not only is Netflix able to stream TV shows and movies from cable television, they also create their own Netflix original movies and series. These are no mediocre performances either. Netflix shows, such as House of Cards, Orange is the New Black, and Narcos are critically acclaimed and personally some of the best shows I have ever watched. 

“The return of Orange Is the New Black is always welcome, not merely because the series is funny and fresh and unlike anything else on television, but because it’s one of the few shows that go all in on the relationships and struggles inherent to being a woman.”
-Libby Hill, New York Times

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