Impact of Global Streaming Platforms on Television Production

Abstract

The television industry is facing new challenges when adapting to the current streaming ‎culture and exploring possibilities of digital distribution. Global streaming services are perceived as a‎ major source of audiovisual entertainment in various countries regardless of the cultural and national‎ heritage of the viewers and thus market competition has immensely increased. This paper focuses on the ‎influence of global video-on-demand (VOD) services on audiovisual production on a national scale. The‎ emphasis is on television production as the audience is transferring into the digital environment – this ‎is perceived as an opportunity for television to appear more competitive while drawing on its unique‎ knowledge of the national audience. The case study demonstrates how the audiovisual industry in the ‎Czech Republic is an example of a strongly nationally oriented market whose evolvement is impacted by‎ the presence of global platforms such as Netflix or HBO Max. Furthermore, by providing examples from ‎the Czech platforms’ market, the case study also illustrates the expansion of local broadcasting providers ‎into the digital sphere.‎