Table Of ContentN
Netflix’s meteoric rise as an online content provider has been well docu- E
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mented and much debated in the popular press and in academic circles
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as an industry disrupter, while also blamed for ending TV’s “Golden Age.” L
For academic researchers, Netflix exists at the nexus of multiple fields: I
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internet research, information studies, media studies, and television and
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has an impact on the creation of culture and how individuals relate to
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the media they consume. Netflix at the Nexus examines Netflix’s broad
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impact on technology and television from multiple perspectives, includ-
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ing the interface, the content, and user experiences. Chapters by leading
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international scholars in television and internet studies provide a trans-
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national perspective on Netflix’s changing role in the media landscape.
E Content, Practice, and Production in
As a whole, this collection provides a comprehensive consideration of
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the impact of streaming television. U the Age of Streaming Television
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Theo Plothe is Assistant Professor of Journalism and Mass
Communication at Savannah State University. He received a PhD in com-
munication from American University, and his work has been published E
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in G|A|M|E and Kinephanos Journal. i
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Amber M. Buck is Assistant Professor of English at the University
y
of Alabama. She received a PhD in English and writing studies from P
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the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and her work has been t
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published in Research in the Teaching of English and Computers and
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Composition.
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N Edited by Theo Plothe & Amber M. Buck
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Cover design by Ming Lee
www.peterlang.com
Netflix at the Nexus
This book is part of the Peter Lang Media and Communication list.
Every volume is peer reviewed and meets
the highest quality standards for content and production.
PETER LANG
New York Bern Berlin
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Netflix at the Nexus
Content, Practice, and Production
in the Age of Streaming Television
Edited by Theo Plothe & Amber M. Buck
PETER LANG
New York Bern Berlin
Brussels Vienna Oxford Warsaw
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Buck, Amber M., editor. | Plothe, Theo, editor.
Title: Netflix at the nexus: content, practice, and production in the age
of streaming television / edited by Theo Plothe and Amber M. Buck.
Description: New York: Peter Lang, 2019.
Includes bibliographical references.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019007087 | ISBN 978-1-4331-6186-5 (hardback: alk. paper)
ISBN 978-1-4331-6187-2 (ebook pdf) | ISBN 978-1-4331-6188-9 (epub)
ISBN 978-1-4331-6189-6 (mobi)
Subjects: LCSH: Netflix (Firm) | Streaming video—Social aspects.
Streaming technology (Telecommunications)—Social aspects.
Classification: LCC HD9697.V544 N4866 2019 | DDC 384.55/54—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019007087
DOI 10.3726/b14725
Bibliographic information published by Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek.
Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the “Deutsche
Nationalbibliografie”; detailed bibliographic data are available
on the Internet at http://dnb.d-nb.de/.
© 2019 Peter Lang Publishing, Inc., New York
29 Broadway, 18th floor, New York, NY 10006
www.peterlang.com
All rights reserved.
Reprint or reproduction, even partially, in all forms such as microfilm,
xerography, microfiche, microcard, and offset strictly prohibited.
To the memory of our iguana Dorian,
the best Netflix-watching buddy you could ever hope to have.
table of contents
List of Illustrations and Tables ix
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction: Netflix at the Nexus 1
Amber M. Buck and Theo Plothe
Section I. Platform 11
Chapter 1. TV IV’s New Audience: Netflix’s Business Model and
Model Spectators 13
Jana Zündel
Chapter 2. Netflix, Imagined Affordances, and the Illusion
of Control 29
Annette Markham, Simona Stavrova,
and Max Schlüter
Chapter 3. The Emergence of Netflix and the New Digital
Economic Geography of Hollywood 47
Luis F. Alvarez León
Chapter 4. Lovemarked Distribution and Consumers’ Behavior:
Netflix Communities Versus Piracy Users’ Conduct 65
Gabriele Prosperi
viii netflix at the nexus
Section II. Content 79
Chapter 5. Netflix and TV-as-Film: A Case Study of Stranger
Things and The OA 81
Ana Cabral Martins
Chapter 6. At the Fringes of TV: Liminality and Privilege in
Netflix’s Original Scripted Dramedy Series 97
Jessica Ford
Chapter 7. Programming Gendered Content: Industry,
Post-feminism, and Netflix’s Serialized Exposition
of Jessica Jones 113
Jason A. Smith, Briana L. Pocratsky, Marissa Kiss,
and Christian Rafael Suero
Chapter 8. Netflix: Culturally Transformative and Equally Accessible 129
Kimberly Fain
Chapter 9. From ViKi to Netflix: Crossing Borders and
Meshing Cultures 147
Oranit Klein Shagrir
Section III. Viewer Practices 161
Chapter 10. Transforming Media Production in an Era of
“Binge-Watching”: Netflix’s Cinematic Long-Form
Serial Programming and Reception 163
Sheri Chinen Biesen
Chapter 11. Binge-Watching the Algorithmic Catalog: Making
Sense of Netflix in the Aftermath of the Italian Launch 179
Fabio Giglietto, Chiara Checcaglini, Giada Marino,
and Lella Mazzoli
Chapter 12. The Netflix Experience: A User-focused Approach to
the Netflix Recommendation Algorithm 197
Daniela Varela Martínez and Anne Kaun
Chapter 13. Do Spoilers Matter?: Asynchronous Viewing Habits on
Netflix and Twitter 213
Theo Plothe and Amber M. Buck
Chapter 14. “Are You Still Watching?”: Audiovisual Consumption
on Digital Platforms and Practices Related to the
Routines of Netflix Users 223
Vanessa Amália D. Valiati
Contributors 239
illustrations and tables
Illustration
Figure 2.1. Three forms of control contributing to the expected
affordances of Netflix. 43
Tables
Table 11.1. Codebook of tweets. 185
Table 11.2. Distribution of tweets in the dataset by codes. 186
Table 11.3. Codeset for the analysis of the interviews. 188
Table 12.1. Overview of the participants. 203
Table 13.1. Language of #HouseofCards tweets. 217
Table 13.2. Word frequency count. 218
