An Investigation on the Netflix Platform in the Context of Flow Theory

Abstract

Today, with the development of technology, many developments and changes have been experienced in mass media. In the traditional period, content could only be accessed from sources such as television, newspapers, magazines, and radio, while the digital platforms that emerged with the era of the so-called new media enabled people to acquire the content they wanted at any time. Netflix, one of these digital platforms, is a video streaming service that offers on-demand access to individuals. Netflix, which first started selling DVD subscriptions by mail in 1998, has turned into a platform that sells monthly subscriptions to reach the video content it hosts today. Digital platforms such as Netflix offer users the opportunity to watch the content they want from anywhere, with the communication device (tablet, phone, computer) they want, in a way that they can create their own streams, without even the need for internet. Within the scope of this study, the contents on the Netflix platform in the context of the flow theory of Raymond Williams will be analyzed by content analysis method. Williams discussed the program structure of the television as streaming. According to him, television contents create a whole among themselves and present a flow to the viewers and the audience is caught in this flow. Within the scope of the study, the contents of Netflix, one of the digital content viewing platforms that are formed as a result of changing broadcasting concepts, will be analyzed using semi-structured interview technique in the perspective of flow theory.