What is widely considered quality television, isn’t necessarily television that is widely watched; this was the case for Mitchell Hurwitz’s Arrested Development. Despite the show receiving critical acclaim, even winning five Emmy awards for its first season, the show failed to match this success with its ratings. The show’s initial run aired on Fox in 2003, before being cancelled by the network in 2006 for not bringing in viewers. Ultimately, Arrested Development was hurt by its method of distribution, at its core being a complex and self-referential piece of comedy that has gained a reputation for requiring rewatching to get a joke. Although off-putting to the average sitcom enjoyer, this style was perfect for attaining a cult following. By rebooting the series in 2013, not only did Netflix know they would attain the viewership of this audience, but “continuing Arrested Development was an important move for Netflix to position itself in relation to ‘quality’ television.” (Jenner, 2018, p.148)

By utilising user’s data, Netflix is able to predict what individual’s would want to watch based on their preferences, rather than how network TV has to air content to bring in the widest viewer base possible. “This represents a shift in audience measurement and interpretation from the notion of the depersonalized mass to the personalized, the individuated, and the autonomous.” (McDonald, Smith-Rowsey, 2016, p.49) Netflix is not only able to revive niche TV shows, but it becomes profitable for them to do so in the pursuit of subscribers. In her book Portals, Amanda Lotz explains how “portal subscribers assess the value of subscriber-funded, internet-distributed portals based on the availability of content that matches personal interests.” (2017)

Netflix has continued to reboot shows and franchises off of the merit of their cult following or a collective nostalgia. This includes Fuller House, Queer Eye, Invader Zim, Gossip Girl, Gilmore Girls etc. Yahoo!Screen even attempted to kickstart their streaming service in a similar manner, reviving Dan Harmon’s Community to draw in the show’s enthusiastic fanbase, serving as evidence for how streaming encourages the revival of tv shows.

By Lily Thetford (33659272)

References:

McDonald, K. and Smith-Rowsey, D. (2016) The Netflix effect technology and entertainment in the 21st century. New York: Bloomsbury Academic.

Lotz, A.D. (2017) Portals : a treatise on internet-distributed television. Ann Arbor, Mich.]: Maize Books, an imprint of Michigan Publishing.

Jenner, M. (2018) Netflix and the re-invention of television. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan.