Netflix is becoming a TV streaming juggernaut. They have 400 scripted TV series slated for 2016 and there are no plans to stop there. At the recent Deal Book conference, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said that he thinks his company should continue to expanding their TV series content for the streaming audience and plans to develop a new Japanese Anime style series.
Netflix Japan has already launched the first bit of anime programming with the show Knights of Sidonia. The show is a mechanical (mecha= involving robots) anime set in the distant future. The spaceship called Sidonia is inhabited by humans, as Earth is no longer habitable. Sidonia is in danger of an Alien invasion and has to be protected by guardians or Knights. The show has been met with a positive reception from fans and critics alike and will be moving on to its third season.
While Hastings is excited about the expansion plan, not everyone agrees. FX head John Landgraf believes that too many television options could overwhelm the company and risk creating a sense of boredom or indifference among viewers, which in turn could hurt other successful shows currently streaming on Netflix. Hastings disagrees with this sentiment. He rebutts by stating: "You go beyond the normal spectrum to get quality and you really stretch to the things that you can do. On-demand and the internet really gives you that power. When you have incredible distribution, then you have to open the front end of the funnel to have incredible producers around the world."
With the success with Knights Of Sidonia, it is clear that Hastings is optimistic about the direction Netflix is headed in. He seems to know what streaming fans want to see and what concepts are marketable. Whether that will equal long lasting success is yet to be determined.
