From the Wall Street Journal comes the story of the changing business landscape in Hollywood, thanks to competition.
Broadcast TV networks used to get first crack at all the best scripts in Hollywood. Nowadays, they are mere participants in a mad scramble.
TV-show creators this year are taking their pitches far beyond the networks, says Jennifer Salke, president of NBC Entertainment. “They are taking them to Netflix,NFLX -1.14% they are going to HBO, they are hitting every cable outlet,” she says. “It just puts you in the position of being even more of an underdog.”
Ms. Salke says NBC aggressively pursued one big comedy project from a major outside studio this season, but “the creators decided to negotiate with Netflix instead.”
That one of the major broadcast networks would feel like an underdog highlights the increasingly competitive landscape in the world of television.
More networks means more opportunity for producers, writers, actors, etc.
“The best writers are in demand now in multiple places,” says Patrick Moran, the executive vice president of ABC Studios, part of Walt Disney Co.
“We’re seeing everyone participating in this derby,” says Kevin Reilly, chairman of entertainment for Fox Broadcasting Co. “It’s at a fever pitch right now.”
When competitive forces are at work, there is more opportunity for those willing to rise to the occasion.
