by Chris Ullrich, Dec 8 2010 // 2:15 PM
Netflix came one step closer to total entertainment domination today with its announcement of a new deal that will bring additional content from ABC, ABC Family and the Disney Channel to the company’s online streaming service. New shows will now be available on Watch Instantly 15 days after their initial air date.
Some of the new content coming to the service includes Grey’s Anatomy, Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters. The deal also brings complete seasons of past shows such as Lost, Ugly Betty and Scrubs.
“TV content streamed from Netflix has proven to be immensely popular with our members,” Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos said in the release. “Adding to our existing Disney-ABC lineup with great network and cable shows, and opening up ABC Family for the first time, are important steps in creating a wide and diverse selection of content Netflix members of all ages can watch.”
Netflix’s “Watch Instantly” service allows DVDs-by-mail subscribers to stream an unlimited amount of TV and movie content to computers, compatible set-top boxes and other devices like Apple’s iPad and iPhone 4. The company also recently made available a stand-alone version without the physical media component for $7.99 per month.
Today’s deal with ABC/Disney is the latest in a series of deals Netflix has put together in an effort to increase the quantity of new content available to its streaming customers. We say keep up the good work and keep the content coming.
Posted in: Movies · New Media · News · Press Releases · Tech · TV
Tagged: ABC, ABF Family, Blu-Ray, Desperate Housewives, Disney, Disney Channel, DVD, Grey's Anatomy, iPad, iPhone 4, Netflix, Netflix Streaming, The Internets
by Matt Raub, Jul 13 2010 // 11:00 AM
ABC may have given the axe to a few big shows this past season, and lost (no pun intended) one of their biggest draws, but it seems that a sparkle can still be seen on the network, in the form of the police cadet drama Rookie Blue. ABC recently renewed the series for a second season, after it scored the network’s highest-scripted debut ratings in six years only three episodes in.
From Variety:
It now ranks second in its Thursday timeslot behind “So You Think You Can Dance,” among adults 18-49 and 18-34.”We’re very pleased that the show has connected with viewers, especially considering the challenge of finding an audience in the summer,” said Quinn Taylor, ABC Entertainment Group’s senior VP of movies, minis and acquisitions.
While the premise is the same, the show is somewhat different than the first of the Police Academy films, sans Guttenberg. Peregrym leads the charge alongside Gregory Smith, Charlotte Sullivan, Enuka Okuma and Travis Milne as rookie cops who work through their freshman year as cops. One could consider this show to be the police version of the networks already-popular Grey’s Anatomy.
The show also marks the star Missy Peregrym’s first show since Reaper to get a second season, but we all know how that ended before. Let’s hope history doesn’t repeat itself.
The fourth episode in the season, entitled “Signals Crossed”, involves Andy (Peregrym) going undercover as a prostitute to impress the Sergeant and airs tomorrow night at 9/8C on ABC.
Posted in: ABC · Action · Announcements · Networks · News · TV · TV Ratings
Tagged: Charlotte Sullivan, Enuka Okuma, Gregory Smith, Grey's Anatomy, Lost, Missy Peregrym, Police Academy, Reaper, Rookie Blue, Travis Milne
by Cortney Zamm, Jan 9 2010 // 4:00 AM
The year 2010 is here! With a new year comes resolutions to make, new goals in mind, and new schedules to follow. But it also means some brand new TV for us all to enjoy.
January 14th
This night brings the return of some of our favorite shows here at The Flickcast including 30 Rock, Bones, Fringe, Supernatural, Grey’s Anatomy, CSI, Private Practice and The Mentalist.
All these shows have been on hiatus, some for almost a month, so with these ratings giants this is sure to be the biggest night on TV all month, no matter what channel you’re watching.
Chuck
Everyone’s favorite geek-turned-spy is back, and Chuck is better than ever. After downloading the Intersect 2.0, we’ll see Chuck perform karate chops AND Spanish Guitar in his quest to keep his family safe and lead a normal life.
Chuck returns for its third season on January 10th with a two hour premiere, and a brand new episode the day after!
American Idol
Regardless of how you feel about this show, you can’t deny its cultural impact and the success it has produced. However, the fun in watching the first few weeks of American Idol is not the talented singers or the tense eliminations.
It’s watching all the people who really can’t sing try their hand at making it big and failing miserably. Let’s face it, with the economy in the can and the current political climate, we all need a little schadenfreude. Idol returns on January 12th on Fox.
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Posted in: ABC · FX · NBC · Networks · TV · TV Digest · Video
Tagged: 2010, 30 Rock, American Idol, Bones, Caprica, Chuck, CSI, Fringe, Golden Globes, Grey's Anatomy, Human Target, Private Practice, Ricky Gervais, Supernatural, The Mentalist
by Matt Raub, Jan 4 2010 // 2:00 PM
While most of the “best of 2009″ lists are petering off in the new year, there are still a few statistics still rolling in. One being the most-illegally-downloaded TV program of the year, which also happens to be one of the least popular. NBC’s Heroes has been on the bubble since last year, which is why the network only ordered half of a season for this year, and will be spreading the episodes out until Spring sweeps.
With that in mind, it would be considered that fans wouldn’t be rushing to their torrent sites or DVD stores to catch up on the super-powered drama, seeing as how they didn’t give it enough of a chance when it was on the air in the past. According to The Hollywood Reporter, that’s just what they’re doing.
“This year, the buzz is that the show may be on the verge of cancellation thanks to dwindling ratings (it averages about 6 million viewers a week, down from nearly 14 million when the show first premiered in 2006).
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Posted in: Action · Announcements · Fandom · Legal · NBC · Networks · News · Sci-Fi · TV · Web
Tagged: 2009, 24, Dexter, Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, House, Lost, NBC, Piracy, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Torrents, True Blood
by Sal Loria, Oct 6 2009 // 12:15 PM

Television network ABC has effectively staked their claim to rule Thursday nights, if the return numbers from The Hollywood Reporter are any indication. But instead of trying to make sense of those numbers, let’s break it down in a more digestible format, and what you really need to know is that ABC crushed the competition.
Both Grey’s Anatomy and the season premiere of Private Practice won their respective time slots while FlashForward tied with CBS’ Survivor in theirs, translating to an almost clean sweep. While most of the other shows couldn’t produce the same viewership, they managed to stay the course and not drop too much. CBS’ CSI: Crime Scene Investigations and The Mentalist, Fox’s Bones and Fringe and The CW’s Vampire Diaries and Supernatural all enjoyed different levels of success.
Left in the cold, however, is NBC and their sinking line-up of programming. Parks and Recreation, Community and SNL Weekend Update Thursday managed to produce poor numbers. Even fan-favorite The Office only managed to do “average,” leading to the former home of “Must See Thursday” placing fourth among the top-tiered networks.
Posted in: ABC · CBS · NBC · Networks · News · The CW · TV
Tagged: Bones, Community, CSI: Crime Scene Investigations, FlashForward, Fringe, Grey's Anatomy, Parks and Recreation, Private Practice, SNL Weekend Update Thursday, Supernatural, Survivor, The Mentalist, The Office, Vampire Diaries