Netflix announced Friday that it will add more content from AMC Networks to its streaming lineup, starting with The Walking Dead.
Season one of the zombie TV series will be available on Netflix Watch Instantly in the U.S. and Canada starting today.
Other original and reality programming from AMC, IFC, the Sundance Channel, and WEtv will also be added, including: IFC's Portlandia and The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret; WE tv's Braxton Family Values, My Fair Wedding, and Bridezillas; and Sundance Channel's All On The Line with Joe Zee and Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys.
Prior seasons will hit Netflix just before the most recent seasons make their TV debuts. Season two of The Walking Dead, for example, starts October 16 on AMC.
"Netflix is already the streaming home of 'Mad Men' and 'Breaking Bad' in the U.S. and Latin America," Ted Sarandos, Netflix Chief Content Officer, said in a statement. "We are delighted to be in business directly with AMC Networks. AMC's programming sensibilities have struck a chord with our members and with the overall viewing public."
Adding shows to Netflix "brings our content to a wider audience, and it provides additional revenue to support production of new shows," said AMC Networks President and CEO Josh Sapan.
Netflix started streaming the first four seasons of Mad Men on July 27 and added the first three seasons of Breaking Bad in early September. The AMC deal comes about two weeks after Netflix inked a deal with DreamWorks that will bring the studio's feature films exclusively to Netflix's streaming platform. What this means is that rather than providing its films to HBO or a similar premium pay TV channel, DreamWorks has opted to show its movies on Netflix.
Those deals, however, come on the heels of Starz announcing that it will pull its content from Netflix in February 2012 due to a licensing dispute. Netflix said in response that it would take the money it spent on Starz and invest it in other streaming deals.
But Netflix has also taken heat in recent weeks for changes to its pricing scheme and overall business strategy. First, it announced plans to separate its streaming and DVD-by-mail plans, upping the price for streaming plus one DVD at a time from $9.99 per month to $15.98 per month. CEO Reed Hastings later apologized for the abrupt manner in which that announcement was made, but went on to say that Netflix streaming and DVD rentals would become two separate businesses: Netflix for streaming and Qwikster for DVDs. Users would have to go to two separate Web sites, pay two different bills, and manage two queues. Not surprisingly, not everyone was pleased.
Ultimately, Netflix has not yet ditched its DVD-by-mail business because its streaming library does not yet offer enough current films and TV shows. Deals like the one with AMC Networks and DreamWorks help boost the streaming library, but it's still a work in progress.
For more, see As Netflix Becomes Qwikster, Customers Lose.