Netflix corporate offices in Los Angeles. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Having helped reinvent television, Netflix is turning back the clock on part of its expansive programming menu all the way to the days of radio.
Seeking to broaden its $18 billion annual content roster—and balance the cost of doing so—the streaming giant put out requests last week to talent agencies about securing video podcast rights. The move comes as the streaming giant makes a concerted push into podcasts, first with an announced Spotify deal, followed by reported talks with iHeartMedia and SiriusXM.
Aside from the truism that all media eventually regresses toward the mean—in this case, niche-oriented, inexpensive-to-produce programming in a wildly fragmented environment—there’s a bit of irony in Netflix’s plans. That’s because the service is taking direct aim at YouTube and its dominance within the video podcasting space, after publicly belittling the service.
Of course, it won't necessarily be cheap and Netflix will have to make sizable investments—eight figures, in some cases—in order to secure exclusive rights to bigger names. Yet even then, a person familiar with the matter noted that due to the volume of content, those acquisitions would be “cheap on a per-episode basis,” even relative to some of Netflix’s unscripted shows.
One talent agent who has seen the proposals told me that…
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Rhea Seehorn in "Pluribus," from Vince Gilligan. (Courtesy of Apple TV)
In “Pluribus” We Trust: “Pluribus” is exactly the kind of series that writer-producers do after they’ve made a couple of hits and have the license to do pretty much anything—said writer here being Vince Gilligan, of “Breaking Bad” renown, who turns his quirky imagination loose in an Apple TV series tailored to those who don’t find Apple’s “Severance” complex enough.
Granted a two-season order, Gilligan reunites with “Better Call Saul’s” Rhea Seehorn in a show that owes a debt to “The Twilight Zone,” but otherwise feels bracingly…
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