Three-quarters of pilot episodes for series in the US do not lead to a sequel. For House of Cards, the series with which the on-demand and streaming video channel Netflix final breakthrough in America, no pilot episode was made. Major broadcasters refused the series without pilot to make, but Netflix immediately saw that there would be a large enough audience for it. That was no fluke, actor Kevin Spacey explains in this video, but a matter of knowing what your audience wants, and being sure there is an audience for what you offer: 'Give your audience what they want, when they want it and in the way they want it, and ask a reasonable price for it.'
'We knew they were making a series that had to rely on a slowly developing storyline, that the complex characters would also only show themselves to viewers over time, and that the story would gain depth with each episode made. Such a series would never make it with a pilot episode.'
Netflix, also available in the Netherlands from 11 September, does not rely on primetime, late-night or other neck-and-neck issues that the broadcasting industry is currently working with. Series are available at any time of day, and are offered complete from the first to the last episode. Thinking about target groups also becomes totally different with this, because those target groups can now be determined solely on content, and not on the size of their purse, or the time they sit in front of the tube.
I do wonder what impact this will have on the Dutch TV drama production climate.
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