6 April 2011

Now there's really no excuse not to man up ... Netflix moves in on Mad Men


For anyone who has yet to hop on the Mad Men bandwagon (if there's any of you left), you are officially out of excuses.  Netflix announced this morning that it struck a deal with Lionsgate to bring the entire series to Netflix, starting with the first four seasons on July 27th.  Future seasons are to be added annually after they complete airing on AMC.  Lionsgate and Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner reached an agreement last week to bring the show back for three more years, so it is expected that the show will reach a seventh season.

The deal is apparently worth between $75 and $100 million, putting the pricetag of each episode somewhere between $800,000 and $1 million.  That's a steep price tag, especially considering the rather bleak history of complex adult drama in syndication.  Shows like Mad Men require consistent viewing; they do not lend themselves well to watching an episode "here and there" like CSI or Law and Order do.  However, Netflix is making a bet that viewers will respond more favourably to their format, which allows users to watch episodes at their convenience and thus avoids the problems that arise from missing an episode of a serialized drama like Mad Men.

The first four seasons of the show are already available to be streamed on Netflix Canada.

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