The effects of two Hollywood strikes that ground television production to a halt in 2023 continued to be felt last year, with TV production output falling by 7 percent on a year-over basis, according to a report from Luminate.
The report found that cable TV networks and streaming video services were most affected by lower-than-usual production, while broadcast networks rebounded more quickly from the SAG-AFTRA and Writer’s Guild of America (WGA) strikes in the summer of 2023.
Broadcast TV saw its output increase 25 percent as the major networks — ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and the CW Network — quickly restart production on scripted programs, game shows and reality-based series and competitions.
NBC was the network with the most broadcast premiers in 2024, with 32 titles launched on the network during the year. ABC and CBS were tied for second place, with 28 titles each, followed by PBS with 26 titles. Fox had the fewest at 24.
Cable networks were the most-impacted, with scripted and reality-based production eached slowed 15 percent on a year-over basis. In addition to the strikes, some cable networks like Warner Bros Discovery’s (WBD) TBS, TNT and Tru TV simply ordered fewer unscripted and reality-based series, opting instead to fill their prime-time schedules with sports.
Still, WBD had the most original cable premiers during 2024, with 251 titles across its channels and others. A+E Networks was in a distant second place with 110 original series premiers during the year, followed by Comcast’s NBC Universal with 47. (NBC-owned cable channels aired the Summer Olympic and Summer Paralympic games for about two months, which interrupted regular programming schedules.) Paramount had the fewest original cable debuts with 23 titles, including the return of “Yellowstone,” which aired the back half of its fifth season later in the year.
On streaming platforms, Netflix had the most original series debuts, with 146 TV shows landing on the service throughout 2024. Its next closest competitor was Disney-owned Hulu with 46 new TV shows last year. (Disney distributes some FX shows, like “The Bear,” on Hulu in tandem or ahead of the cable network; it wasn’t clear how many of those shows were included in Luminate’s count.) In third place was Amazon-owned Prime Video with 42 titles, followed by Peacock and Apple TV Plus, which tied at 36. With just nine titles, Disney Plus had the fewest TV series premiers in 2024.
Things are not looking much better for 2025, with Netflix ordering 97 new TV shows so far, according to Luminate. By comparison, basic cable TV orders were at 98; when excluding FX, that count falls to 91. Starz has the fewest new TV show commitments, with just three so far this year. The numbers are likely to fluctuate throughout the year as streaming platforms and TV networks add or walk away from certain commitments.
While Netflix was no surprise to Luminate, the data insights and measurement firm said the commitments and current production of shows for cable TV networks prove they have largely “given up on scripted programming.”
The full report is available to view from Luminate by clicking or tapping here.
