Netflix at present is very much what the entertainment of the future will look like, believes Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos. What Sarandos meant is that in 10 years, TV will be app-based and net-delivered and will allow users watch shows in any order.
Netflix a better option for producers
“In 10 years…it will be entirely delivered on the Internet. It will be a series of apps that’s closer to what you see on smart TV. I don’t think it will be delivered on cable, and I don’t think it will be linear,” Sarandos said while speaking at Vanity Fair’s New Establishment Summit in San Francisco on Tuesday.
Netflix’s approach for making movies could prove a safer financial bet for producers, according to Sarandos. The company makes a flat payment for buying a film, whereas a typical studio makes a small upfront payment initially and shares the profits, provided the project turns out to be successful.
Netflix’s model is gaining popularity, and at present the service boasts more than 65 million subscribers. The television industry is being altered due to Netflix’s consumer appeal, combined with the massive $2.9 billion that Netflix paid last year to license content. Sarandos said the behavior of consumers is changing and that it is not a Netflix problem as all industries have to face changing consumer behavior.
Redefining the digital age
Netflix, which boasts of being the “world’s leading Internet television network,” has played a major role in redefining TV in the digital age. The company did away with the linear programming flow of traditional networks that required viewers to be available at their appointed time for viewing shows and movies. The streaming service has a goal of making movies and full episodes of seasons available on demand around the globe at the same time.
Sarandos believes it is important for Netflix to have a presence in Los Angeles even though it is a technology company. Sarandos, who has been with Netflix for the past 15 years, said not moving to Silicon Valley was his “conscious decision.” The streaming firm had 400 people in LA and about 1,600 employees at its headquarters in Los Gatos, Calif.
Bryan Lourd, a top Hollywood agent working with Creative Artists Agency who joined Sarandos on the panel, said that the 10-year forecast does not consider virtual reality.
