But Netflix again went way beyond the mere presentation of panels that characterizes the total involvement of many networks and streaming services at TCA tours. In addition to ten press conferences in the Grand Ballroom at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, the home of summer TCA gatherings, Netflix took over a second ballroom and turned it into a lounge area for the press to use throughout the day. Believe it or not, no network does that any more, though 20 years ago they all hosted hospitality suites where reporters and critics could hang out and talk about the day’s events with their fellow journalists, network publicists and, occasionally, talent.
Then there were the alternate experiences Netflix made available to TCA members throughout the day in other areas of the hotel. They included informal press conferences with producers from such established Netflix properties as Narcos, BoJack Horseman and Lady Dynamite; a Gilmore Girls gazebo that served as a backdrop for a photo op in Stars Hollow (the town in which the show is set); a virtual reality visit to the eerie world of Stranger Things, and a hip-hop tutorial in the penthouse of the Hilton by the legendary Grandmaster Flash, a producer of Netflix’s upcoming drama about the birth of that genre, The Get Down.
In mid-afternoon there was an event the likes of which I haven’t seen in over 25 years of covering TCA tours: The Netflix Puppy Panel. Dogs from such Netflix series as Lady Dynamite, Fuller House, the upcoming historical drama The Crown and Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life; Chelsea Handler’s beloved Chunk, and Ranger, a D.E.A. enforcement ranger who is, according to a Netflix spokesperson, an “advisor” on Narcos were seated on the stage for an authorized photo opportunity that reporters couldn’t resist.
Interestingly, as dozens of critics paraded by the dogs, Ranger of the D.E.A. began repeatedly whining and barking, as if he were on to something.
Earlier there was a session with Ted Sarandos during which Netflix’s Chief Content Officer once again dismissed concerns about ratings for the service’s programming and marginalized recent reports about same by Nielsen and Symphony. In fact, he pointed out that one of those services asserted that ratings for Orange is the New Black were twice as high as those reported by the other company.
“Subscriber growth, not advertising, drives our revenues,” he reminded the room. Short-term performance of shows “has really no relevance for us.” The usual announcements about highly intriguing future programming followed, including a pre-school show from The Jim Henson Company created by and starring Julie Andrews titled Julie’s Greenroom and a contemporary version of the classic ‘70s sitcom One Day at a Time from the executive producer of the original, Norman Lear. (Why is it, I could only wonder, that Lear – arguably the most influential television producer not simply of the ‘70s but in the history of the medium – can no longer sell a series to a broadcast or cable network but is welcome on a streaming service? As it happened, he celebrated his 94th birthday yesterday – not at TCA.)