Dinâmicas de distribuição e circulação de séries originais Netflix: um estudo de caso de "House of Cards"

Abstract

This work investigates how the dynamics of distribution and circulation of original Netflix series are characterized, trying to understand how they specify processes of audiovisual convergence. We start from the description of the communication scenario in which Netflix emerged in the 1990s to distinguish media aspects that characterize it contemporaneously. We take the notion of media dispositive as a metaphorical gesture to understand the media arrangement configured by Netflix. This metaphorical concept helped us to understand it as a convergence phenomenon whose network layout articulates the following elements: a) streaming, b) multiscreen architecture, c) recommendation system, and d) extension in online social networks. We relate the aspects of streaming and multiscreen architecture to the distribution dynamics, and recommendation system and extensions in online social networks to Netflix's circulation modes. Based on this perspective, we describe the distribution and circulation dynamics of the fourth season of the original series House of Cards. We chose this ficcional series by establishing itself as the inaugural model of production adapted to the media circumstances of Netflix, which extended to others original productions. The data collection, conducted between 03/04 and 04/04/2016, was restricted to the multiscreen connections of the Netflix system (accessed by Website, SmartTV, Smartphone and Tablet) and to its official profiles on Facebook and Twitter, taking into account also the specific profiles of House of Cards on these online social networks. We adopted random sampling techniques in this case study. We conclude that the House of Cards distribution dynamics are organized for instantly and homogeneous access, which implies the series' peak of prominence in Netflix connections. Alternatively, the dynamics of circulation had are configured primarily as a function of what the Netflix system organizes and suggests, to the detriment of users' preferences. This strategy of prominence extended to the profiles on Twitter and Facebook, in which frequent postings were made of exclusive content of the series. These publications fit specific socio-cultural contexts - for example, the Brazilian political scenario - in social appropriation dynamics that extrapolated the premiere period of the fourth season of House of Cards. We characterize the dynamics of circulation not only as convergent, but also as transmedia. The distribution and circulation dynamics of House of Cards are therefore complementary, since they are convergent but subtly distinct, which makes the Netflix media arrangement heterogeneous, malleable and susceptible to the contingencies of the social, political and cultural contexts it undergoes.