Netflix’s original content will double by the end of 2016

I hope you like Netflix’s original content, because the company intends to double the number of shows it has next year. Yesterday morning, Netflix CCO Ted Sarandos announced that his company will have released 31 of its own shows by the end of 2016, and revealed that it’s also working on 10 stand-up specials, 12 documentaries, and 30 children’s shows. That’s a lot of new content, but Sarandos made sure to clarify that it’s all high-quality stuff, and claimed that one of the biggest reasons the company started releasing original content in the first place was because it didn’t want to have to deal with the headache of securing streaming licenses for third-party content. 

If you’re a fan of scripted Netflix shows like Jessica Jones and Master of None, rejoice: the streaming service is doubling down on its commitment to original programming. Chief content officer Ted Sarandos announced that Netflix will reach a total of 31 scripted shows over the course of 2016 in a speech at the UBS Media Conference this morning. That’s almost double the 16 such shows the service aired in 2015. Sarandos also shared that Netflix is working on 10 new feature films, 30 kids’ shows, 12 documentaries, and 10 stand-up specials. “It’s not just a lot of volume,” said Sarandos. “This is quality stuff.” Netflix’s push for greater original content has been slowly accelerating for years, but the company’s expansion is still staggering when laid out in simple terms. The number of scripted Netflix series was stuck in the single digits until earlier this year despite the success of shows like House of Cards and Orange Is the New Black. The service’s rapid growth has created a sort of vicious cycle: expanding into original content means other networks are more hesitant to license their own shows to Netflix, which means Netflix has to make even more of its own original content to remain competitive.