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Amazon Original Series Won't Be Released All at Once
Unlike Netflix, Company Wants Weekly Watercooler Buzz
Netflix's push into original series like "House of Cards" has so-far focused on releasing all episodes of an entire series all at once -- something that many users like and have grown accustomed to as they binge-consume old episodes. Some critics however have argued that this approach tends to dull the longer-term PR benefit of weekly Monday morning watercooler chatter. Amazon insists they want to do things differently, and has made it clear that their original series will ultimately be release in a more traditional, scheduled fashion. Amazon has already tinkered with the formula by airing pilots online, then allowing users to vote on which programs get promoted to full series runs.
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b10010011
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join:2004-09-07
united state

b10010011

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Water cooler buzz?

Does anyone really stand around and talk about what was on TV last night?

I can't remember the last time anyone asked me if I saw "Blah, blah, blah episode on TV".

But whatever Amazon.
Tikker_LoS
join:2004-04-29
Regina, SK

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Tikker_LoS

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Re: Water cooler buzz?

LOST was the best example of this for me. there were a lot of us that used to spitball the previous nights episodes

Tokidoki
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join:2002-08-26
South Richmond Hill, NY

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said by b10010011:

Does anyone really stand around and talk about what was on TV last night?

Actually, yes. Certainly had plenty of that at work/school with the walking dead.

Cabal
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join:2007-01-21

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Yup, quite regularly in fact. People were talking about that last Doctor Who for a while.

PaulHikeS2
join:2003-03-06
Fitchburg, MA

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Game of Thrones. I have to watch live or everyone who sees it will spoil it for me. Twitter is the new watercooler.

GlennLouEarl
3 brothers, 1 gone
Premium Member
join:2002-11-17
Richmond, VA

GlennLouEarl

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Re: Water cooler buzz?

Yeah, I suppose twits might tend to watch more TV than others, and discuss the finer points of "who shot JR" and whatnot.
GlennLouEarl

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Last time: "The Stand" (so, not a weekly wait)
elefante72
join:2010-12-03
East Amherst, NY

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Traditional TV is pretty much dead except for the reality crap that you can create for $1.

It used to be that a series was like 24-26 episodes, but if you take recent HBO you are lucky to have 10-12 or even OTA series vary widely (15-25). So the sit by the watercooler is dying.

The major problem w/ spacing is context an continuity. Take for example LOST. If you tried to keep up with all of the stories/flashes over a whole year spread out or you missed an episode, it would be practically impossible to keep the story in your head. Now that it is on Netlfix I can watch the series again (esp for all the eps I missed) serially and now the show makes WAY more sense (contextually that is )

If Amazon would truly want to innovate they would create clusters or arcs as they are known and release them say staggered over the week say 2-3 in one week. Then maybe wait a week or two and restart. This way they get better buzz and if the arc are written properly the people watching will have better context. Now all of a sudden you are creating little mini-series and that way it is much easier to consume.

The Netflix blast as it were is fine too, and I understand where they are coming from, but I think that as series mature they will want to retain buzz over a longer period and will adapt.

Keep in mind that Netflix and Amazon are experimenting, there are no "rules" in streaming so their methods will adapt, change, and mature over time. They are just coming at it from two different ends...

buzz_4_20
join:2003-09-20
Dover, NH

buzz_4_20

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Of Course

Why keep doing what the consumer wants and expects when the PR department has other ideas.
zod5000
join:2003-10-21
Victoria, BC

zod5000

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All I can say about Netflix is....

I signed up for a free 30 day trial to watch Arrested Development (which I watched in less than a week).

Which means they never got a dime out of me for it. They might of at least gotten one renewel fee had the spread out the episodes (or maybe I would of waited until they were done airing)....
buckweet1980
join:2011-12-31
Saint Petersburg, FL

buckweet1980

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Re: All I can say about Netflix is....

said by zod5000:

I signed up for a free 30 day trial to watch Arrested Development (which I watched in less than a week).

Which means they never got a dime out of me for it. They might of at least gotten one renewel fee had the spread out the episodes (or maybe I would of waited until they were done airing)....

I'm disappointed with the latest season of Arrested Development. It seems they went cheap to produce the show. Meaning that in seasons 1 - 3 the characters were all intermingled in the same episode. I'm currently about 6 episodes into the 4th season (after Netflix took it over) and you hardly ever see the actors in the same show anymore. It's so piecemeal-ed together now and doesn't have that same feeling the other seasons did to me.

Hopefully this is the only show they do this to if they ever have another show with somewhat known actors like AD..
zod5000
join:2003-10-21
Victoria, BC

zod5000

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Re: All I can say about Netflix is....

said by buckweet1980:

said by zod5000:

I signed up for a free 30 day trial to watch Arrested Development (which I watched in less than a week).

Which means they never got a dime out of me for it. They might of at least gotten one renewel fee had the spread out the episodes (or maybe I would of waited until they were done airing)....

I'm disappointed with the latest season of Arrested Development. It seems they went cheap to produce the show. Meaning that in seasons 1 - 3 the characters were all intermingled in the same episode. I'm currently about 6 episodes into the 4th season (after Netflix took it over) and you hardly ever see the actors in the same show anymore. It's so piecemeal-ed together now and doesn't have that same feeling the other seasons did to me.

Hopefully this is the only show they do this to if they ever have another show with somewhat known actors like AD..

I don't think that was due to budget, I think that was due to the actors having other gigs and they couldn't actually get all the actors in the same place at the same time. I read they only managed to get them all on set for two days (which was probably the scene in Lucille #1's condo).

I thought of it differently. I thought it was really clever how they intertwined the whole thing and the innovative ways they dealt with not having all the cast members available all the time.
silbaco
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join:2009-08-03
USA

silbaco

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Amazon Original Series

When I looked at their original series, I couldn't help but think that every one of them was crap. So it doesn't really matter when they air them.
dynodb
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join:2004-04-21
Minneapolis, MN

dynodb

Premium Member

Re: Amazon Original Series

said by silbaco:

When I looked at their original series, I couldn't help but think that every one of them was crap. So it doesn't really matter when they air them.

House of Cards was excellent. Everything else ranged from mediocre (the Arrested Development reboot) to the unforgivably terrible (Hemlock Grove).
ISurfTooMuch
join:2007-04-23
Tuscaloosa, AL

ISurfTooMuch

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Re: Amazon Original Series

I think he's talking about the pilots that Amazon recently ran.

I didn't get to see them, but I heard they varied in quality. I wasn't impressed with the supposed reaction of the producer of Zombieland, who seemed to lash out at viewers for not giving the show enough votes to make the cut. Not a classy response, IMHO.
smcallah
join:2004-08-05
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smcallah

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Re: Amazon Original Series

The Zombieland pilot was basically a lame shot for shot remake of some of the movie with different actors.

So I'm not sure what the producer expected to happen.

If they had created a new set of characters set in the same world, it might have been able to go somewhere.
ISurfTooMuch
join:2007-04-23
Tuscaloosa, AL

ISurfTooMuch

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Re: Amazon Original Series

Yeah, a friend of mine watched it and said pretty much the same thing you did.
eco
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join:2001-11-28
Wilmington, DE

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They were awful garbage.

aaronwt
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join:2004-11-07
Woodbridge, VA
Asus RT-AX89

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Well I guess i won't be watching many shows from Amazon...

I want to be able to watch several in one sitting. If I have to wait around for them to be released I either won't bother watching or will wait until they are all released. And since I might have to worry about hearing spoilers, I'll probably just avoid watching them completely.

If they want to release the shows in a traditional fashion, then they need to offer it on cable or OTA. I don't watch streaming content to watch it in the old ways of watching TV.

cableties
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join:2005-01-27

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cableties

Premium Member

Too bad...

I do like watching a series in non-traditional manner. And I don't "chat at the water cooler" (cliched term as it is) but over cubicles and workbenches.
Instead, because I am one of the 'veteran' cord cutters (+4 years), I will Netflix a series I've never seen. Or HBOGo (e.g. Game of Thrones) And via Netflix, FireFly, Eureka, Fringe. I am now on Fringe, Season 2, having started Series One last week.
Co-workers that do want to chat about shows they watch (distraction as it is), when I mentioned Fringe, they are like, that is so old. That came out in 2008... So? I am enjoying it. And the protagonist actress, Anna Torv, is actually quite good (reminds me of Alias series) and I understand she is an Aussie, and will be playing role in Heavenly Sword movie (in the game, she voiced talent for main character).
I think that having a series complete, allows for more "overload" of the series (I am having some weird dreams) and does need to rethink the advertising marketing.
Anyway, I am starting a job at Massive Dynamic this week, so wish me luck!

shortyd999
join:2008-10-21
Birmingham, AL

shortyd999

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Thumbs Down

Thats not being original Amazon to release shows the same way the traditional networks do. I love that Netflix took a diffierent approach and releases their entire seasons at once. I cant wait to see their new series Orange Is The New Black
XJakeX
join:2005-03-05
Coventry, RI

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great idea to shake up the business

I like the idea. Pick a night and time to debut a new series (opposite some new series debuting on CBS), and let episode one start. Then next week on the same day and time, episode 2. And so on and so forth. Once an episode has debuted, it would available to stream anytime.

This would please the water cooler/twitter crowd, and those who don't care about that and prefer a more concentrated experience can wait until several episodes have premiered, and then watch them all together, or wait until the entire season is available and marathon it any way they please.

I think the HBO and Showtime execs would sit up and take notice, and the entire cable only crowd would have to rethink their whole strategy. Go for it Amazon - and Netflix should do the same thing with season 2 of House of Cards.

tmh
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tmh

Anon

Yes, this way if it sucks.....

Everybody will have time to know it's not worth the bother.