"Peak TV": How Original Content Is At An All-Time High - And Growing

GREAT NEWS FOR BRAND MARKETERS - SCRIPTED ORIGINAL SERIES IS CONTINUING TO CLIMB

According to a new research from FX Networks, scripted television is at an all-time high. This year, a record 455 series were produced and made it to air. These shows came from a myriad of sources, including cable, broadcast and streaming video on demand.

This number is way up from last year, which was itself a record year, proving that scripted series have only begun their climb, especially with the booming popularity of streaming services like Amazon and Netflix. And this is all great news for brand marketers looking to integrate product placement into their mix.  In this blog, Hollywood Branded looks at the rise of original scripted content, the benefits to brand marketers and the opportunities for product placement. 

Scripted Series Are At An All Time High - And Streaming Is The Cause

FX Networks' annual study reveal 455 scripted series went out this year - up from 421 in 2015. Of these, 181 were on basic cable, still the platform with the most series, while broadcast-network had 145 shows. However streaming services were not far behind with 93 series.

This burst in growth for scripted series is referred to as "Peak TV" by the President of FX Networks, the network behind the recent study.

One of the most interesting thing about the findings is that while the number of series has made a huge jump (71% over the past five years), streaming services were the only platform to add more series over the past year.  Cable and network TV are still struggling with declining audiences - primarily due to Streaming Video On Demand's high quality content offering.

Other platforms hold strong, only losing a total of 13 shows between them, with big networks like HBO and FX consistently making good TV... but this tells us a lot about how important streaming has become to television - and will continue to be. 

Why This Is Great News For Your Brand

We are at an all-time high for scripted series and original content, and the trend doesn't look like it's going to lose momentum any time soon.

This is fantastic news for brand marketers. More shows means more opportunities to feature your brand in the content. And not only that; with the sheer number of show, you are far more likely to find the perfect fit for your brand or product than, say 5 years ago, with only half as many shows on TV as there are today.

Shows of all shapes and sizes means tailoring a product placement strategy to your brand marketing needs is even easier and more flexible for what you want. And the best thing is, product placement doesn't have to cost you big bucks.

Productions are eager to incorporate brand integration into their shows - and you may not even realize. the reasons why.  It's not just about payola.  Check out our blog 3 Reasons Why Productions Use Product Placement to find out more about why productions love brands. 

Is Product Placement Right For Your Brand?

Are you interested in integrating product placement into your entertainment marketing mix, but simply don’t know where to start? There is so much more to product placement than you may think,  and it is important to be educated about the key tactics to best fit your brand. Download our Product Placement 101 Infographic today to start learning more!