Would Outlander on Netflix provide ratings boost? There’s a precedent…
Yet, are there benefits of an Outlander – Netflix collaboration? There is at least a precedent via Shameless, one that inspired this article being written to begin with.
Earlier today at the Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour, Showtime head David Nevins commented that one of the big reasons for the ever-expanding success of Shameless is the show’s performance on Netflix. Seasons of the show are uploaded there around nine months after they premiere on Showtime, and it’s amassed a rather large viewership that eventually comes over and subscribes to the network. After all, they don’t want to wait when they really don’t have to! Quality also proves, more often than not, to be worth the extra money.
There’s a case to be made from a Starz point of view that you want to expose your show to the largest audience possible, just as there is also a case to be made for wanting to make big profits. If Outlander were to head over to Netflix in America it would certainly produce a ton of profits, and in turn make many a Netflix viewer happy who has wanted to check out some episodes. The conversation rate could be worth the effort.
Related – Should Outlander change anything in order to get more Golden Globe nominations?
As for whether or not an Outlander – Netflix pairing actually happens…
Don’t count on it. By and large, premium cable series are intent on establishing brands. Outlander is indicative of the Starz brand. They don’t want to see it anywhere else, and they already market the show so well that they probably hope they can court viewers without going in the Netflix direction. Given that the show’s not in any immediate danger — it already has a season 4 and there are season 5 talks underway — getting additional viewers elsewhere isn’t a priority.
In going back to the Shameless example, we do actually know that even with its success, Showtime has some anxiousness about it airing off the network during its run — Nevins specifically mentioned at TCA that the downside is that there are some who may directly associate Shameless with Netflix rather than Showtime. That’s a problem.
If you love Outlander, the simple solution is to keep watching Starz. You could also buy individual episodes from Amazon, if you’d prefer.
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Meanwhile, be sure to like CarterMatt for even more insight when it comes to the Starz series. (Photo: Starz.)