Every year around this time, I put together a top 10 list of the best shows on television. When I started writing this list years and years ago, I felt like I had a pretty good grasp on most of the original shows being produced for television, including network TV and a smattering of cable and subscription cable shows. Then, cable started producing more originals. Next, streaming services began to produce their own line-ups of shows. Then each of these outlets ramped up to produced even more original content. At this point, there are hundreds of shows being produced each year, for a variety of different audiences. In fact, a recent report revealed there are estimated to be 455 shows that were produced for U.S. television in 2016.
Go ahead and digest that number for a minute. Back in 2002, the study reports there were only 182 programs being produced each year, and the majority of those were found on network television. In a mere 14 years, those numbers have more than doubled and have proven that they may eventually even triple. It's no wonder that fewer and fewer people are watching network shows and mediums like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon are getting more popular. Intriguingly, it shows that all mediums have increased in programming, as well.
The most recent information, which comes to us courtesy of FX Networks Research shows that in 2016 broadcast shows bumped up from 135 originals in 2002 to 145 originals in 2016. On cable, the numbers are even more striking. In 2002, basic cable produced 30 original shows. In 2016, that number was 181, with many of those shows coming from channels such as FX and AMC. Streaming is also a brand new market. In 2002, there were no online outlets producing original shows, but by 2016 93 originals were produced on services like Netflix and even Seeso. Thanks to channels like Starz and Cinemax increasing output, the numbers on subscription cable jumped from 17 in 2002 to 36 in 2016. Not too shabby overall.
As you will note, the broadcast networks have remained the steadiest in terms of number of programs produced, which other networks and services have begun really producing content in abundance. A few years ago, it was FX's John Landgraf who announced we were reaching peak TV, but since 2015's numbers indicate that 415 originals were produced and that number jumped to 455 shows in 2016, it doesn't seem as if we've actually hit that max number, yet. Still, 455 shows is nearly impossible to keep track of and we wouldn't be surprised if only a few of these make your regular viewing list.
So, how many shows can you keep up with each week? Let us know in the comments, below, and take a look at what new programs are hitting the schedule this winter, here.
