Netflix Inc. will release its new competition reality show "Rhythm + Flow" in weekly episodic batches, but the company said it has no plans to abandon the content-binge model it popularized.
The schedule for the new season of "The Great British Baking Show," which Netflix will release one episode per week, prompted speculation that the company might be abandoning its practice of releasing entire seasons of series at once. Netflix responded that it had released some licensed series on a weekly schedule in the past and that it was "trying something new" with "Rhythm + Flow." Netflix will make the first four episodes of its new competition reality show available Oct. 9, with three-episode groups released in subsequent weeks.
"In hopes of keeping Rhythm + Flow's winner a surprise, we're trying something new! but not happening with more shows than that," the company tweeted from its U.S. account.
Netflix has done this before with broadcast partners, specifically for "Breaking Bad," when the company released episodes to U.K. viewers as they became available through its partnership with AMC Networks Inc., a representative said. New episodes of "The Great British Baking Show" will be available on Netflix the day after they air on Channel 4 in the U.K.
For "Rhythm + Flow," the company is releasing the episodes in batches to "build momentum with the audience," according to the representative, who stressed that this does not represent a broader strategy shift for Netflix. Each three-episode batch to be released corresponds to a different part of the competition, with the first batch following auditions for the rap competition, the second set covering the competition itself, and the third batch showing final performances.
