It likely doesn't matter since the cost benefit analysis sways heavily in favor of benefit. The brand stuff is just a plus. They wouldn't continually be spending so much on the show if it wasn't making a decent profit. Otherwise it would be Rome.
Game of Thrones 4.1 - "Two Swords" - Rate and discuss
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It likely doesn't matter since the cost benefit analysis sways heavily in favor of benefit. The brand stuff is just a plus. They wouldn't continually be spending so much on the show if it wasn't making a decent profit. Otherwise it would be Rome.
I guess I don't understand the business model of companies like HBO because at least in my case - I got discounted cable by subscribing to HBO to begin with which means that HBO is paying At&t a subsidy in order to subsidize my cable and in so doing I become a HBO subscriber.
So how do they make money since they don't receive any $ from advertisers? Do they have that many full price subscribers that makes the whole venture profitable? Apparently so.
Oh, I'm sure it's making a decent profit; in fact by this point in its run I imagine "decent" doesn't even cover it. I was just pointing out that brand plays a big role in contemporary cable drama. The failures of Rome and Deadwood came at a time when HBO's brand was more secure than in the early years of Game of Thrones, when AMC and Showtime had stolen some of its luster. I sometimes wonder if GOT would have lasted long enough to build an audience if it had come around a few years earlier.
A great season premiere. I didn't find the introduction of the new Daario jarring, although they've dialed the character down even further. Pedro Pascal was very good as Oberyn Martell, and the Hound had by far his best episode yet with some eminently quotable lines. It's funny how easily viewer sympathies can be twisted. The Hound callously killed Arya's friend in the first season and yet here they are as an enjoyable screen duo. The budget increases over the years have been evident on screen. The SFX for the dragons were incredibly good by television standards, measuring up well against movie quality SFX.
No, it doesn't exactly mean that.
You can't actually purchase HBO without some sort of cable. Companies like Comcast have basic TV, internet, and HBO bundles, but they are still very costly. And a decent chunk of that cost is because they have to pay HBO. And when cable companies give deals like a free year of HBO, that's on their dime in order to entice you into multiple years of service. They're still paying HBO for that.
If you're unsure of how HBO makes money, you could read this: http://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0812/how-hbo-makes-money.aspx
According to that article, the speculation is that HBO makes $1.4 billion a year just in subscriber fees. That makes Game of Thrones' budget just a drop in the bucket.
Maybe. But it's hard to say if it would have had continued support by HBO. I think they realize their mistakes with Rome and Deadwood since they made a boatload on DVD sales for those shows, something that they hadn't really factored in. GoT could have suffered the same fate if produced in the same era.
TV now is changing with so many shows on disc and streaming, that people are flocking to these types of shows and eating them up. Add to that the technology changes both in streaming and for creating VFX, and it's more likely that shows in this decade can reach for that bar and still succeed. In another decade, the bar may even be set higher. At least if television trends continue.
Haven't read the whole thread, so this might have already been mentioned, but the hilarious Facebook recaps are back (though this one doesn't quite match the quality of their Season 3 recaps):
http://happyplace.someecards.com/30451/game-of-thrones-facebook-recap-season-4-episode-1
http://happyplace.someecards.com/30451/game-of-thrones-facebook-recap-season-4-episode-1
And it's back, for your enjoyment...
If Game of Thrones took place entirely on Facebook - Season 4, Episode 1.
If Game of Thrones took place entirely on Facebook - Season 4, Episode 1.
