HBO and Netflix are the top nominees for Tuesday’s Golden Globes.
In the last few decades, we’ve seen a significant amount of chest-puffing among Netflix and HBO, the two award show’s top nominees, and who gets more Golden Globe Awards nominations.
In 2018, the pay-TV streaming service and the network were tied for the top spot among nominees for TV with 14 nominations each in Tuesday night’s 2023 awards ceremony.
However, do Globes provide anything more than an opportunity to express your gratitude to your mom on TV before a vast (but not as big as it was) audience? Are they driving people to sign up for the service? That’s hard to answer.
“I sure believe that awards generate buzz, but they are also highly contingent on various factors. The Academy Awards or an Emmy will likely have more prestige than Golden Globes. Golden Globes,” notes Dave Tice, a research counselor at Hub Entertainment Research.
HBO and Netflix Grow–And Sometimes Shrink–For Many Reasons
There’s no tangible evidence to suggest that awards shows boost or degrade streaming companies’ or network’s reputations. When signing up for a subscription, users don’t check a box explaining why they chose to sign up. It can be challenging to determine whether the ebbs and flows of the subscription depending on the content from the channel, economic trends, or something more mysterious, like buzz.
Furthermore, Netflix and HBO publish numbers every quarter, which means that the January Golden Globes are lumped in with other possible triggers for shrinkage or expansion, which include those of the Academy-Awards, the of-the-moment social media buzz, and even storms, all of which could result in disasters that force individuals to cut off coverage while they tackle financial challenges.
The Prestige Factor Of The Golden Globes
Yet, Netflix and HBO have struggled for the highest-nominated trophy for nearly ten years, and they must believe they have something to gain from it. They’re not shy about pointing out the flaws of other services’ successes. They certainly enjoy sending out press releases and letters to investors that boast their standing as an official Golden Globe favorite.
But no matter how prestigious award shows (and the Globes aren’t the only ones) will not alter the outcome of a television show, So it’s unlikely that they’re doing much to push up subscriptions. Emmy favorites like the Fox show Arrested Development and 30 Rock from NBC 30 Rock struggled to gain an audience despite major Emmy successes.
Hub’s study reflects this. “We inquired about the impact on awards during our research in the past (“Evolution of video branding”). You can see that it’s not considered a top-tier priority but is placed in the second level with a budget, recommendations, writer/producer, and timeliness,” Tice says. Tice.
What are the factors that determine the top-tier of factors? No. 1. There’s that mysterious word “buzz” and reviews of programming. The third option is a program that is family and kid-friendly.
Tice says that to make an impact on subscriptions and other subscriptions, an event like a Golden Globe moment would require a piggyback from something else to generate enough attention. “Did the show or movie win many award categories (e.g., Titanic), or was there a surprise award winner (e.g., Parasite)? Was there a noteworthy and emotional performance that generated social media buzz (e.g., Sheryl Lee Ralph from Abbott Elementary on the Emmys this year)? The mere fact that you won isn’t enough to make a difference without something else that can raise the awareness of someone else,” Tice says.
