Netflix to become a traditional TV producer in new ‘Killing’ deal?

Netflix has already branched out into funding original content for its Watch Instantly service, but a new deal may see it co-fund a television program for cable television for the first time.

Months after it was initially raised as a possibility, it turns out that Netflix is nearing a deal with AMC to keep the critically divisive The Killing alive – but in such a way that suggests that the DVD-lending, content-streaming giant is looking to move into more traditional studio waters.

According to a report on Deadline: Hollywood, Netflix is nearing a deal with AMC and Fox TV Studios for a third season of Veena Sud’s American remake of the Danish series Forbrydelsen that will see the company share production costs butnot receive any form of exclusivity of debut for the content (The original rumors for the deal back in August suggested that Netflix was looking to secure exclusive first use rights for any new episodes produced, with an eye to the series then being aired on AMC at some undefined later point, similar to the deal worked out between DirecTV and NBC for the latter seasons ofFriday Night Lights). Instead, AMC is expected to premiere the episodes with the season being added to Netflix upon broadcast completion.

According to Deadline, two things made the deal more attractive to all parties involved. Firstly, executive producer and showrunner Sud had what was described as “a strong third-season pitch” for the show, which may allow it to relaunch itself following the second season conclusion of the long-running “Rosie Larson” case and give new viewers a chance to start the show without fear of missing backstory, and secondly, Fox TV already had all actors contractually locked into a third season, keeping costs down while also ensuring that break-out stars Joel Kinnaman (Soon to be see as the new Robocop) and Mireille Enos attached.

What’s surprising about this deal is the lack of “get” for Netflix; previously, when the company has made forays towards funding or producing original content, it has done so because it would get “first dibs” on the result (See its deals for Lilyhammer, or the currently in-production new season of Arrested Development, not to mention the American remake of British political drama House of Cards). Instead, this deal appears to simply give Netflix after-the-fact rights to stream the show, in a way that isn’t significantly different for viewers or subscribers from the way that other television series get handled. Obviously, there is the differentiator of the fact that Netflix will (co-)own the third Killing season and therefore won’t have to worry about paying licensing fees or the possibility of the content being pulled away from it should relationships sour with the rights-holders, but nonetheless; is that enough of a gain that Netflix should move into a position more traditionally taken by studios or financial backers for the first time?

Source : digitaltrends[dot]com

Netflix confirms loss of streaming content from A&E Networks

More than 800 hours of content from A&E Networks disappeared from Netflix's Watch Instantly service on Friday, and it may not be coming back quick enough for the streaming provider, thanks to complicated negotiations.

If you’ve been spending your downtime this summer catchng up on such shows as Hoarders or Pawn Stars on Netflix’s Watch Instantly streaming service, you may have been surprised this weekend when you went to continue your catch-up spree. Don’t worry, however; you weren’t falling victim to some kind of well-intentioned televisual intervention via long-distance proxy when you couldn’t find the shows on the service. It turns out, around 800 hours of content from A&E and affiliated networks was taken from the service on Friday, and more is on the way out.

The Hollywood Reporter has confirmation from Netflix that the A&E titles were removed from the service at the end of last week. “A number of titles expired today, that is true, but we have titles coming on and off all the time,” reported Netflix spokesman Joris Evans when asked about the disappearance of shows including not only Hoarders and Pawn Stars, but also Storage Wars, American Pickers and several others. As Evans’ statement may suggest, Netflix is playing down the show’s disappearance, and with some reason; the company is actually still in negotiation with A&E over a new agreement that would see the various shows return to the service sooner rather than later, in which case, why draw attention to what may end up being a hiccup in service?

On the other hand, there’s the other hand. The negotiations between A&E and Netflix didn’t lead to an agreement in time for uninterrupted service, and they are still ongoing three days into the shows being offline with, according to the Hollywood Reporter’s unnamed sources, no end in sight. The issue that hasn’t been settled isn’t, apparently, anything to do with money but exclusivity, interestingly enough; Netflix is said to be asking for “some level of exclusivity that A&E is unwilling to grant.”

It’s possible that this could be a sign of things to come for Netflix. With the rise of alternate streaming avenues for broadcasters – Amazon Prime and Hulu, to name just two, not to mention the continually-rumored Apple variation on the idea that may or may not be connected with the equally long-rumored Apple TV product – Netflix may find more and more often that broadcasters have no problem with the idea of sharing their content with streaming services, but are increasingly unwilling to limit the number of services that their content is available on, no matter how much money is offered to sweeten the deal. In this, Netflix may be a victim of its own success; having proven the value of streaming content, now they have to deal with a market in which the content providers recognize the value of their content in this context.

Source : digitaltrends[dot]com