Netflix successfully adapted to the needs of the general public and the fast technological developments. We will be looking at how Netflix came to become the household name it is today.

Since the late 1990s, technological advances created convenience for viewers due to the “increased control over how, where, and when to  view provided by digital video recorders (DVRs), DVDs, electronic programming  guides (EPGs), digital cable boxes, laptops, smartphones, and tablets expanded  the    convenient use of television” (Lotz, 2014, 54) Convenient TV streaming allowed the public to tailor entertainment around their own schedule rather than following the set TV program.

With the convenience of streaming established with both the development of streaming and mobile/portable television. Lotz states that by controlling the time and place of viewing and providing high quality has made live TV/cinema viewings less desirable . (Lotz, 2014,54-55).

With the increase in accessibility due to convenience, Netflix has provided their users with a range of tv shows, movies and reality tv to suit everyone’s taste, further expanding the home cinema concept. On demand has now allowed the public to view where and when they see fit, therefore giving the audience the freedom to consume media autonomously. This has led to the overindulging of media which has since been used to create the term “Binge-viewing”. By providing all episodes, the public may opt to watch it all in order to prevent cliffhangers/unresolved endings, abandoning the traditional weekly viewing structure.

However Netflix has become aware of the necessity of traditional weekly released as seen with its high show squid game. By releasing the episodes slowly it allows the audience to eagerly wait for the next, the series Is still also available for individuals who may opt to binge.

By: Amal Wahliye

References:

Amanda Lotz (2017), ‘Theorizing the Nonlinear Distinction of Internet-Distributed Television’, Portals: A Treatise on Internet Distributed Television, https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/maize/mpub9699689/