Netflix

Though the decision to end the series was announced on Monday, the decision to pull the plug on the series was made several months ago, according to a person with knowledge of the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the decision.

The video streaming giant said it will use the proceeds of the senior notes offering for capital expenditures and “strategic transactions.”

Netflix is planning to spend approximately $8 billion on programming next year, and anime is set to play a big role in the company’s plans. Netflix has 30 different anime projects that are in varying stages of development.

Analyst Michael Nathanson says broadcasters’ biggest weapon against SVODs is their live sports and news content. That gives them a key edge against cable, which can no longer compete with the aggressive scripted content investments coming from the likes of Netflix, Hulu and Amazon. (Photo: Wendy Moger-Bross)

Content owners are about to get a lot more insight into viewership of shows on Netflix, which has long held such sought-after ratings data close to the vest. Nielsen is offering a new service that will let media subscribers see how many people watched their shows — and their rivals’ shows — on Netflix.

Netflix says it may spend as much as $8 billion on content in 2018 — a figure that could make it the biggest content buyer of any media or technology company. The company slipped the figure into its quarterly letter to shareholders, adding that it had $17 billion in content commitments over the next few years, and is expected to spend between $7 billion and $8 billion on content in 2018.

The streamer says more than 8 million subscribers have watched at least one season of one series in 24 hours or less — and lists the top 20 shows they’ve binged

After the close of trading Monday, the company reported a 49% year-over-year increase in global subscribers in the third quarter. The global tally now stands at 104 million. In the quarter, Netflix added 850,000 new customers in the U.S., to hit 52.77 million overall.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Netflix is sinking deeper into debt in its relentless pursuit of more viewers, leaving the company little margin for error as it tries to build the […]

The streaming service represents “an open road. I love the creative freedom that’s available there,” Rhimes said.

Shares of Netflix hit $198.92 Friday, one day after the company announced its first true price hike in years.

The price of the most popular plan is going up by 10% to cover rising content costs, starting in November.

Under an agreement with the government of Canada, Netflix has agreed to invest a minimum of $500 million Canadian (about $400 million U.S.) in original productions in the country over the next five years. Netflix will establish a permanent, multipurpose film and TV production presence in Canada — the first time that the company has done so outside the U.S.

Netflix leads off-network launch with previous-season episodes of the CBS drama currently available for streaming. WE tv to launch the series on cable in 2018. CBS O&Os will serve as launch group for broadcast syndication beginning in fall 2018.

Dave Chappelle, Ellen DeGeneres, Chris Rock and Jerry Seinfeld all crashed scenes from Netflix original programming as the streaming service debuted its “Netflix Is A Joke” TV campaign on Emmy night. Each of the comedians has upcoming Netflix specials.

Netflix Chief Financial Officer David Wells says $7 billion a year on content might just be a starting point — as long as the company can continue to add to its more than 100 million subscribers around the world.

Disney’s Star Wars and Marvel comic-book movies will be included in the upcoming service, making it the only way to stream those movies on demand in the U.S. as part of a monthly subscription. (So, not on Netflix.) A price hasn’t been announced yet. The service is expected in late 2019 after Disney’s current deal with Netflix expires.

Would you smoke a strain of weed based on the feeling you get from one of your favorite TV shows? That’s something Netflix tried to provide for fans this weekend with a pop-up dispensary in West Hollywood, Calif., to promote its new series Disjointed. The streaming giant partnered with a dispensary, Alternative Herbal Health Services, or AHHS, to distribute 12 strains of marijuana based on 10 of its shows.

The idea that content is king has long rested on the notion that distribution — in whatever form it takes — is a low-margin commodity, and the biggest share of profits flows to the creators of original programming, who can sell to the highest bidder. But as internet streaming disrupts channels like cable and broadcast, Disney now appears to have set its sights on distribution — and a potential new revenue source.

Why would Shonda Rhimes, the star writer of ABC’s primetime lineup for the last decade and the creator behind shows like Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal, want to leave network TV? Her move to Netflix is the clearest sign of a seismic shift in the television world, where traditional metrics of success like massive ratings, syndication deals, and prime-time slots matter less, and greater artistic independence is the ultimate goal.

Four out of five of the shows watched on Netflix were found by its subscribers thanks to recommendations offered them, Netflix says. Those suggested new favorites are much more customized for each subscriber than might be evident from a glance at the Netflix home page.

With the news this week that Shonda Rhimes is leaving ABC for Netflix, the streaming giant added yet another big name to its increasingly deep bench. Since it began investing eye-popping amounts of cash in original programming, Netflix has quickly won over showrunners and filmmakers interested in getting financed with few strings attached. So Rhimes is in very good company. Here’s a look at some of the other bigwigs who have made the leap.

The ABC network three years ago handed its most lucrative night of the week — Thursday — to its most prolific producer, Shonda Rhimes. ABC grouped three Rhimes-produced shows together and promoted the bloc as “Thank God It’s Thursday.” So Netflix’s announcement late Sunday that Rhimes would be moving her Shondaland production company to the streaming service was a gut punch to ABC. The network has raked in hundreds of millions of dollars over the years in advertising revenue and foreign distribution fees from the sale of Rhimes’ shows.