Peak TV has peaked yet again. The number of original scripted TV series this year jumped to 495—just barely missing 500—as the annual output from streaming services surpassed the tallies from broadcast and basic cable for the first time.
According to new data from FX Networks Research, 160 streaming series aired this year, compared to 146 shows on broadcast TV, 144 on basic cable and 45 on pay cable. In 2017, 487 scripted series aired in total on streaming, broadcast and cable networks.
That number doesn’t include the estimated 750-plus unscripted series that also air on those outlets.
Streaming now accounts for 32 percent of all original series, as broadcast slipped to 30 percent and basic cable fell to 29 percent.
Over the past four years, the number of scripted series from streaming services has increased an astounding 385 percent, while basic cable’s output fell 17 percent in the same timeframe.
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