American viewers are used to it: dozens of premieres a month, hundreds of shows every year, a guarantee from Hollywood that there will always be something new to watch.
The so-called era Cumbre TV has included unexpected gems (“The White Lotus”), smash hits (“Stranger Things”), standard programming (nine series from Dick Wolf, producer of “Law & Order”) and the baffling (five seasons of “Fuller House”, the reboot of “Full House”).
But a new reality has emerged in recent months: Cumbre TV has reached its peak. The number of adult scripted series ordered by networks and streaming companies for US audiences fell 24 percent in the second half of this year, compared with the same period last year, reports Ampere Analysis, a research firm. Compared to 2019, that’s a 40 percent drop.
For years, TV executives have spent billions of dollars on series to help develop their streaming services and win subscribers. But the buy-at-any-cost strategy fell out of favor on Wall Street in the spring, when streaming powerhouse Netflix announced it had lost subscribers for the first time in a decade. Shares of Netflix collapsed and other entertainment companies soon saw their shares fall as well.
Hollywood changed, putting a new emphasis on higher profits instead of subscriber counts. Then companies began to worry about a slowing economy and a troubled ad market. Since the summer, strict cost-cutting measures have been adopted and layoffs have become widespread in the industry.
“It’s part of cost-cutting and stock price chaos, and part of a correction of the buying frenzy over the last five years, where series were literally ordered over the phone without watching,” said Robert Greenblatt, former president of NBC Entertainment and Warner Media.
During the year, the deepest drops in the number of orders for adult scripted series in the US were at Netflix, Warner Bros. Discovery (which includes HBO and the Turner Channels) and Paramount (which includes CBS, Paramount+ and Showtime). .
But there are also the outliers: Apple TV+ and Amazon have both upped their purchase of adult scripted series this year. These companies, which derive most of their revenue from technology products and services, “are not as subject to the same budget constraints,” said Fred Black, Ampere’s research manager.
And international and unscripted series orders are holding steady, Black said.
In the end, there could be something positive for viewers. “For these companies to put more thought into each project is actually good for business,” Greenblatt said. “Hopefully it leads to less waste and more shows worth watching.”
JOHN KOBLIN
THE NEW YORK TIMES
BBC-NEWS-SRC: IMPORTING DATE: 2022-12-27 21:30:08
2023-09-01 23:12:34
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