Actually I suspect that this is what it's changed. It's likely that Netflix has abandoned the long tail. They are now focusing on shows that have immediate, sho

Actually I suspect that this is what it's changed. It's likely that Netflix has abandoned the long tail. They are now focusing on shows that have immediate, short term mass appeal. Previously Netflix was able to invest in "quirky" shows that had strong appeal to a small percentage of its user base. The classic examples here are indeed Sense8 and Marco Polo. These shows were not blockbusters but they had a strong and loyal following and that should be highly valued by Netflix. Particularly when it comes to original content and as a subscription service, Netflix should be primarily focused on loyalty above all. These are the shows that keep viewers subscribed and make unsubscribing painful. But the economics here quickly become complicated as the culture evolves. In a world where (a) many (most?) people are already have a Netflix account (b) there are now many competing streaming services each of which have their own exclusives and (c) the concept of "television" itself is gone, now you just have "screens" all over the place and (d) there is an explosion (probably bubble[1]) of original content and amateur content and (d) there is an arms race for talent driving up salaries across the board... the end result is that Netflix is now engaged in a month-by-month war not just to defend the many subscribers it has accumulated but also to take (and retake) subscribers who may have been drawn away to other competing steaming services that have access to historic brands. Netflix no longer has the luxury of gradually building a large, deep catalog that appeals to small segments of the market. It must offer everything, or at least something extremely compelling, to all users, every month, or those users will churn and be drawn away by competitors. Netflix is likely moving towards the blockbuster model. In this light it starts to make sense why Netflix is dumping hundreds of millions on feature films and also focusing on big shows that can command huge audiences. The blockbuster model is driven by a series of big events carefully scheduled throughout the year to get users to show up in large droves when you need them for something they don't really need. Competitors are doing the same. The streaming business meets the blockbuster model and now you've got to produce a blockbuster every month to keep people coming back.