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Netflix is estimated to spend between $12-13 billion in 2018, spending more than any film studio this year. The streaming giant has been curating new titles every month and has been doubling down making their own content. New films and returning shows are either in production or coming soon to the streaming service. With the recent spending estimate out, Netflix won't be slowing down any time soon.
When Netflix was introduced in 1997, the company's business model was based in DVD sales and rentals via mail. Since then, Netflix has grown to become a juggernaut in the streaming service and film and television industries. Each month, the streaming service rolls out new titles they are adding to their list, while also developing projects in house. Subscribers have the opportunity to watch their favorite TV shows, or see the latest content the streaming service has to offer of their originals. Netflix has sustained itself for over 20 years and they won't be slowing down or rolling back on any new projects.
According to a report from The Economist, Netflix will be spending a whopping $12-13 billion in 2018, more than any film studio or television company. Current chief content officer, Ted Sarandos, joined Netflix in 2000 when the company was just a DVD rental firm. In 2011, Sarandos made the bold move acquiring House of Cards for $100 million. Many thought the move profligate, showing that Netflix was a source of money but didn't offer serious competition to studios and television companies that had taken decades to build.
But Netflix flipped the script, helping to mold the streaming service branch of the film and television industry as we know it. With the huge spending this year, Netflix will offer subscribers 82 feature films. While Warner Brothers, the Hollywood studio with the biggest slate, will send theaters only 23. The company will also be producing or acquiring 700 new or exclusively licensed television shows, adding 100 scripted dramas and comedies, documentaries, comedy specials and children's programming, among others. Beyond the reaches of Hollywood, Netflix is currently making programs in 21 countries, such as Brazil, Germany, India and South Korea.
Netflix is a behemoth in the streaming industry and part of this is due to the amount of content the streaming service acquires and produces in house. Countless projects are in the works with Netflix, and returning shows like critical successes Stranger Things, Marvel's Luke Cage, and GLOW, among others, are returning or likely to return. The business model is changing and growing all while adding new content for its many subscribers. The company has a strong base of subscribers that continues to grow when the company adds content audiences want to see or pick up shows that had previously been cancelled. With their spending this year, Netflix is sparing no expense to give their subscribers as much content as possible.
