Fifty-five years after Gene Wilder first opened the doors to Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory, Netflix now invites audiences back inside. It features familiar visuals, the return of an original Oompa-Loompa, and a Wonka voice that resembles the original chocolatier many remember. However, the film and TV industry that existed when those doors first opened has…
Echoes of Screen & Streaming | Part 2 of a two-part series In Part 1 of this two-part series, I examined what my discussion with Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters revealed about Netflix’s shift beyond traditional streaming. The main point was that pressing play might become a launch, rather than a conclusion. Personalised discovery could connect…
Echoes of Screen & Streaming | Part 1 of a two-part series Last week, I met Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters at the company’s Sydney office during a small media roundtable with three other Australian journalists. The discussion covered live sports, AI, gaming, advertising, personalisation, interactivity, fandom, and physical experiences. There was no single announcement or…
The NRL’s record broadcast agreement appears to preserve Australia’s established sporting order. Look more closely, however, and it reveals how thoroughly that order has already changed. Part one of a two-part series on the changing sports-media landscape. When the NRL announced its new seven-year, $5.3 billion media rights agreement, the obvious story was the deal’s…
Throughout much of television history, sporting events served as communal experiences. Millions of viewers would tune in to the same broadcast, observe identical camera angles, listen to the same commentary, and follow a unified narrative created by the production team. Regardless of whether viewers were in a city or a regional area, their experience was…
Over the past decade, cinemas have been exploring how to stay competitive with streaming services. With viewers now often at home, equipped with large TVs, surround sound, and extensive on-demand content, cinemas face a tough question: what unique value can the theatrical experience provide that streaming and home theatres cannot? The response mainly focuses on…
Image by Stefan Grage from Pixabay
Ten years ago, live from CES in Las Vegas, Netflix made one of the most significant announcements in modern media history. In a single day, the platform expanded from operating in around 60 countries to more than 190 worldwide. Australia was among the first countries outside the United States to receive Netflix, marking the start…
Marc C-Scott, Victoria University For a brief period, film and TV piracy in Australia seemed to be somewhat under control. When Netflix launched in Australia in 2015, it provided a service the local media sector had lacked for years: instant, affordable and extensive access to a broad library of movies and series. A decade later,…
How rising prices, fragmented content, and platform aggregation are reshaping the streaming promise When Netflix arrived in Australia in 2015, it was presented as a disruption. For years, Foxtel had defined subscription television with bundled packages, premium prices, and long-term contracts. Streaming promised something different: flexibility, affordability, and control. Watch what you want, when you…
