Josh Sapan: Technology, Competition are Fueling Content Creativity

NEW YORK: Josh Sapan, the president and CEO of AMC Networks, believes there has never been a better time to be a television producer, and that binge-viewing is altering the way shows are being made.

While it is often said that this is the golden age of television, there are dynamics at work in the market that continue to improve the quality of shows, Sapan explained at The Content Show at New York Television Week today.

“There are new outlets now for creative expression,” Sapan said. “Today, in addition to dozens of cable channels commissioning scripted programming, there are the SVOD platforms. They need to do something new and different, they need to break rules to capture attention.”

Consequently, added Sapan, we are in a creative revolution that is fostering different forms of storytelling.

Television used to be a fairly narrow business with the same producers working for several networks. Now, the multichannel landscape and the SVOD platforms like Netflix and Amazon have busted the system by which shows are pitched wide open, and therefore new voices are being heard, he explained.

Sapan cited the example of Vince Gilligan, the creator of Breaking Bad, who got started in the business by submitting a short film to a contest. Robert Kirkman was writing comics in Kentucky; his The Walking Dead is one of the most watched shows on television today. Maron, a comedy on IFC Channel, came out of comedian Marc Maron’s popular podcasts.

In order to continue to find new voices, Sapan believes it is important for his company to be “deep into various creative communities, outside the mainstream, in order to find voices of authority that are under recognized.”

In a television landscape with so many channels and platforms producing scripted content, Sapan believes the key to succeeding is to “have TV shows and brands that mean an awful lot to viewers.” This was part of the motivation for AMC Networks’ acquisition of a 49-percent stake in BBC America. “The brand is great and the content is wonderful.”

Sapan does not view over-the-top services like Netflix as a threat. “The best preparation [for this new world] is to have the programming people want the most. We have no intention of going OTT, but we syndicate our shows to Netflix. We live and thrive off of the cable, satellite and telco world—it’s a wonderful system.”

Besides being a place to sell AMC original programming to, platforms like Netflix are creating another benefit for content owners—they are changing the way people watch shows.

“It used to be we watched only on Thursday nights at 8 p.m,” said Sapan. “Now, people bingeing on their own time has a tremendous influence on TV.”

Binge viewing has created viewers who pay more attention to shows, and consequently want more nuanced and better crafted content. This is elevating the quality of series. “Technology has created better television,” he concluded.