Why Netflix Won't Be the HBO of the 21st Century

"the name of the game is subscriber retention."

I love Netflix, but one way or another, Netflix will have to own or create original hit shows/films to compete with other content channels. Otherwise, it won't be more than a niche DVD rental channel that's increasingly squeezed out by cheaper rivals like Redbox.

On Marketing Your Film

"End of the day, I didn't make the movie for a poster, but I made the movie so people could see it."

The New World of Distribution

NYT: Declaration of Indies: Just Sell It Yourself! "It might seem counterintuitive that D.I.Y. independents are borrowing a page from the George Lucas playbook. But only if you forget that Mr. Lucas is the most successful independent filmmaker in history. 20th Century Fox distributed the first “Star Wars,” yet Mr. Lucas kept the sequel and merchandising rights. “If I make money,” he said when the movie was released, “it will be from the toys.” The new generation of D.I.Y. filmmakers might not be pushing toys on their Web sites (though I’d like to see an Andrew Bujalski action figure), but they do peddle DVDs, posters, CDs, books and — much as Spike Lee did before them — are getting hip to selling themselves alongside their art."

Forget studio dollars and hustle for street dimes if you plan to go indie.

OK Go on Youtube videos

"So we’ve got this ridiculous situation where the machinery of the old system is frantically trying to contort and reshape and rewire itself to run without actually selling music."

Best illustrative letter on content/media businesses trying to adapt to selling (digital) bits instead of (physical) atoms.

Terrifying TV

Interview with Showrunner Ed Bernero. "We’re one of the most repeatable shows on television, we do almost the same numbers with our second and third run as we do with our first run, and it’s because the only place you can see us is on television. Because the two studios have never been able to agree on the sharing of the revenue, we’ve never been on line. You can’t download us, you can’t watch us on Hulu, you can’t watch us on anything but CBS... Our example should be, whoa, if you don’t put it online, people will watch it over and over on reruns. They will watch it on television. That’s our revenue stream."

"The relaxation of the fin-syn rules, where the networks could own shows, began the erosion of television viewership."

"We only program things that appeal to New York and Los Angeles and in many ways spit on the rest of the country... Let’s see if I can say this without ending my development career. It’s very female, development. Development staffs are almost all female. It’s not that easy to get a male skewed show through development."

"You don’t see loners anymore, you don’t see a Mannix or a Rockford Files or something where it’s a tough guy standing against the world. It doesn’t appeal to women... Women don’t really compete with their mothers; men compete with their fathers."

Fantastic interview about TV biz & running a hit show.

On the Netflix/WB Deal

According to John August, "When Netflix ships a disc of Corpse Bride, I get nothing. When Netflix ships those bits over the internet, Warners gets paid, and I get a few cents. That’s good."

The Future of Content Distribution