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‘House of Cards’ is the death of water cooler television

Whether we like it or not, Netflix’s original series “House of Cards” has changed the way we consume television. The 13-episode first season is the most-watched series on the streaming website and has put Netflix on the map as a legitimate threat to network programming as we know it.

What does this mean for us as viewers? On the one hand, this means that Netflix subscribers will get content based not on how many ads the networks can sell but on what viewers actually want to see. This is what makes pay cable networks like HBO and Showtime so successful. Some of their shows may not get the ratings that network TV gets, but through their subscriptions they get paid either way.

The problem with “House of Cards” is not the content. It’s a very enjoyable political drama with some great actors playing delightfully awful people. Netflix obviously noticed that modern TV viewers enjoy political intrigue and antiheroes. However, the problem with the show is the mode of distribution, which has potential to kill the “water cooler conversation” aspect of television watching entirely.

Netflix released all 13 episodes of “House of Cards” at the same time, allowing viewers to watch them all in one day if they want to. This kind of “binge viewing” has become increasingly popular these days in the age of TV on DVD and Bluray and now streaming. However, this is not the same as getting caught up on “30 Rock” on a boring Sunday afternoon. “House of Cards” is a brand new series with episodes directed by David Fincher, starring Academy Award-winner Kevin Spacey, and yet they’ve made it almost impossible to discuss it.

Television is released gradually for a reason. The episode format gives viewers time to think about what they have just watched and people the chance to discuss what they think is going to happen next. If they’re released all at one time, there is really no reason to break them up at all. Plus, in the current “spoiler alert” culture we live in, it will be nearly impossible to discuss the series until everybody has finished it. Everyone who watches the show is bound to be on different episodes at different times.

Magazines and websites that review and discuss television shows are going to have to start reviewing entire seasons of shows at one time if this is the way television is going to work in the future. What was once a semi-social experience of discussing and sharing shows with friends will be replaced by everybody streaming their own thing at their own pace.

Clearly streaming and binge-viewing have become the standard for modern television, which in many ways is an improvement, but if shows keep releasing this way, plenty of people are bound to be left in the dust. Prepare to be constantly covering your ears to avoid hearing the ending of a show that came out yesterday, because that’s where we’re headed if this continues.
 

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