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Welcome to Our Generation USA!

Herein, we feature
Streaming Media
as any Media Content Originated and Streamed over the Internet, e.g., Netflix Shows, or Premium Channels, e.g., Max. Can also include TV Content that started on Broadcast Channels, but which are now available on the Web
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Web Television, including a List of Web Television SeriesPictured below: Live TV has a new home on Fire TV
Click here for a List of Web Television Series.​

Web television is original episodic content produced for broadcast via the Internet. The phrase "web television" is also sometimes used to refer to Internet television in general, which includes Internet-transmission of programs produced for both online and traditional terrestrial, cable, or satellite broadcast.

Web television content includes web series such as: 
The current major distributors of web television are: 
Examples of web television production companies include: Generate LA-NY, Next New Networks, Revision3, and Vuguru.

In 2008, the International Academy of Web Television, headquartered in Los Angeles, formed in order to organize and support web television actors, authors, executives, and producers. The organization also administers the selection of winners for the Streamy Awards.

In 2009, the Los Angeles Web Series Festival was founded. Several other festivals and award shows have been dedicated solely to web content, including the Indie Series Awards and the Vancouver Web Series Festival.

In 2013, in response to the shifting of the soap opera All My Children from broadcast to web television, a new category for "Fantastic web-only series" in the Daytime Emmy Awards was created.

Later that year, Netflix made history by earning the first Primetime Emmy Award nominations for web television series, for Arrested Development, Hemlock Grove, and House of Cards, at the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards. Hulu earned the first Emmy win for Outstanding Drama Series, for The Handmaid's Tale at the 69th Primetime Emmy Awards.

​History:

Until the 1990s, it was not thought possible that a television program could be squeezed into the limited telecommunication bandwidth of a copper telephone cable to provide a streaming television service of acceptable quality, as the required bandwidth of a digital television signal was around 200 Mbps, which was 2,000 times greater than the bandwidth of a speech signal over a copper telephone wire.

Streaming services were only made possible as a result of two major technological developments: discrete cosine transform (DCT) video compression and asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) data transmission. DCT is a lossy compression technique that was first proposed by Nasir Ahmed in 1972, and was later adapted into a motion-compensated DCT algorithm for video coding standards such as the H.26x formats from 1988 onwards and the MPEG formats from 1991 onwards.

Motion-compensated DCT video compression significantly reduced the amount of bandwidth required for a television signal, while at the same time ADSL increased the bandwidth of data that could be sent over a copper telephone wire. ADSL increased the bandwidth of a telephone line from around 100 kbps to 2 Mbps, while DCT compression reduced the required bandwidth of a digital television signal from around 200 Mbps down to about 2 Mpps.

The combination of DCT and ADSL technologies made it possible to practically implement streaming services at around 2 Mbps bandwidth in the 1990s.

1995 to 2000:

In April 1995, Rox, a small public access program from Bloomington, Indiana, became the first series distributed via the web, with an episode titled "Global Village Idiots".

Later that year, New York advertising creative Scott Zakarin persuaded his employers Fattal and Collins to finance an online television drama along the lines of the contemporary television drama Melrose Place. 

The Spot became the first episodic fiction website, the first web soap opera. Fattal and Collins asked their Vice President, Sheri Herman, to obtain venture capital to finance it, because it was draining the resources of this boutique agency.

Herman raised 7 million in a round led by Intel. She brought in advertisers including Visa and Apple to sponsor both The Spot and additional pieces through via banner ads and product placement. This was the first time advertising sponsored novel fictional content on the web.

The Spot featured beautiful actors in a Santa Monica, California beach house called “The Spot”. The characters authored what would be later termed blogs, with movie clips and photos of their current activities. Viewers could post to the site and email the cast to offer advice and became part of the storyline. Audience opinion was used by the writers to shift the plot-lines around.

According to Zakarin, at its height the site received over 100,000 hits a day. The site earned one of the original Webby Awards, however the business was unable to generate sufficient revenue against competitors such as The East Village. Zakarin sold his interest in 1996 to investors who formed American Cybercast and was later fired. Zakarin produced another comic soap, Grape Jam, before returning to television and film (notably producing the Shatner-Nimoy dialogue Mind Meld) before returning to the Internet with Soup of the Day and Roommates. 

The Spot continued alongside other American Cybercast web series, notably the first sci-fi series Eon-4 and The Pyramid, until the company fell into bankruptcy in 1997.

In January 1999, Showtime licensed the animated sci-fi web series WhirlGirl, making it the first independently produced web series licensed by a national television network. A month later, the series, created by David B. Williams and produced by his Visionary Media studio, premiered on Showtime in a first-ever simultaneous web/telecast.

The WhirlGirl character went on to appear occasionally on Showtime, hosting a “Lethal Ladies” programming block, for example, but spent most of her time online, appearing in 100 webisodes.

In 1999, Santa Monica based Television Internet premiered the eight-minute weekly series Muscle Beach. It was a sitcom, news and fitness program in one, viewable for free with the just introduced Windows Media Player. The series lasted three seasons.

In 2000, The Raven started Daytona Beach Live. The station showed video about life, events, and attractions in the Daytona Beach area for up to 17,000 viewers.

2000 to 2005:

In the early 2000s, the Japanese anime industry began broadcasting original net animation (ONA), a type of original video animation (OVA) series, on the Internet. Early examples of ONA series include Infinite Ryvius: Illusion (2000), Ajimu (2001), and Mahou Yuugi (2001).

In 2004, Greek internet television with name Tvonline created by Film Director Angelos Diamantoulakis, was the first web TV in the world with full program and only web productions. Was built in 2004 and it had 1.500.000 viewers per day.

As broadband bandwidth began to increase in speed and availability, delivering high quality video over the Internet became a reality. The video-sharing site YouTube was launched in early 2005, allowing users to share television programs. YouTube co-founder Jawed Karim said the inspiration for YouTube first came from Janet Jackson's role in the 2004 Super Bowl incident, when her breast was exposed during her performance, and later from the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

Karim could not easily find video clips of either event online, which led to the idea of a video sharing site.

Web Central TV, Vimeo and DailyMotion soon launched their own services to deliver original digital video. Shows such as Rocketboom appeared and post-dot-com-bust video networks such as ManiaTV!, iSTATION TV and the Ripe Digital Entertainment networks launched.

In 2003, The Spot executive producer and head writer Stewart St. John revived the brand for online audiences with a new cast, and created a separate mobile series to air on Sprint PCS Vision-enabled phones. St. John and partner Todd Fisher produced over 2,500 daily videos of the first American mobile phone soap, driving story lines across platforms to the web counterpart, The Spot (2.0).

By 2005, St. John-Fisher created and launched the first online half-hour scripted drama, California Heaven.

In 2004-2005, Spanish producer Pedro Alonso Pablos recorded a series of video interviews featuring international well-known actors and directors like Guillermo del Toro or Keanu Reeves, plus other successful Spanish filmmakers like Santiago Segura or Álex de la Iglesia, which were distributed through his own website.

2006:

In mid-2006, several independent Web series began to achieve popularity, most notably: 
These series were distributed independently, often using online video portals YouTube and Revver. All series acquired audiences in the millions, led by lonelygirl15s over 100 million views during its 26-month run. The series was so successful that it secured a sponsorship deal with Neutrogena.

Soup of the Day was later re-crafted and edited as a feature-length film, making it the first web series distributed on disc by distribution company Echo Bridge Entertainment. 

SamHas7Friends was nominated for an Emmy and temporarily removed from the Internet when it was acquired by Michael Eisner.

March 2006 also saw the debut of Goodnight Burbank (created by Hayden Black) as a "webisodic" series. The original series was named one of iTunes best podcasts of 2006. Also hitting the scene during the summer towards the end of the year was Feed Me Bubbe which ended up showcasing that even a Grandmother and Grandson can achieve internet celebrity status. Fortuna TV Channel is the first web TV in Turkey.

Alejo & Valentina, an Argentine flash cartoon series launched in 2002, began to be broadcast by MTV in 2005.

2007:

In 2007, Beckett and Goodfried followed up their lonelygirl15 success with KateModern, a series which debuted on social network Bebo, and took place in the same fictional universe as lonelygirl15. Big Fantastic created and produced Prom Queen, which was financed and distributed by Michael Eisner's nascent online studio Vuguru, and debuted on MySpace. These web serials highlighted interactivity with the audience in addition to the narrative on relatively low budgets.

In contrast, the web series Sanctuary, starring actor/producer Amanda Tapping, cost $4.3 Million to produce. Both Sanctuary and Prom Queen were nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award. Award-winning producer/director Marshall Herskovitz created Quarterlife, which debuted on MySpace and was later distributed on NBC.

Meanwhile, IronSink produced Roommates, the second original series hosted by MySpace. Roommates ran for two seasons, was sponsored by companies such as Ford, and was known for its sophisticated product placement. Felicia Day created and starred in the independent comedy web series The Guild, which won the 2007 YouTube Video Award for Best Series.

2008:

The Internet continued to grow as a marketing tool and outlet for independent creators to display their work. Web television continued to improve in quality, rivaling network television. Online viewing was becoming less foreign to viewers and creativity flourished.

Independent producers gained popularity, demonstrating that web television was a legitimate medium, and that web series would be more than a passing fad. The major networks and studios took notice of the trend, and began to debut their own original series.

ABC started the year with the comedy web series "Squeegies," created by Handsome Donkey and produced by digital studio Stage 9. NBC debuted Gemini Division, a science fiction series starring Rosario Dawson, produced and created by Electric Farm Entertainment (the creators of the cult web series Afterworld).

Warner Bros. relaunched The WB as an online network beginning with their first original web series, "Sorority Forever", created and produced by Big Fantastic and executive produced by McG. With the rise of studio based web series, MTV announced a new original series created by Craig Brewer that brought together the indie music world and new media expansion.

In 2008 Bravo launched its first weekly web series called "The Malan Show". It followed New York fashion designer Malan Breton through the process of making it in America as an independent fashion designer.

Established creators also started producing high-profile original web series in 2008. Joss Whedon created, produced and self-financed Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog starring Neil Patrick Harris and Felicia Day.

Big Fantastic wrote and produced Foreign Body, a mystery web series that served as a prequel to Robin Cook's novel of the same name. Beckett and Goodfried founded a new Internet studio, EQAL, and produced a spin-off from '"lonelygirl15" entitled "LG15: The Resistance".

Dedicated media coverage of the web television space debuted with organizations such as GigaOm's NewTeeVee and Tubefilter News. Mainstream press also began converate. In the UK, KateModern ended its run on Bebo. That site also hosted a six-month-long reality/travel show, The Gap Year, produced by Endemol UK, who also made Kirill, a drama for MSN.

Australia emerged separate market for online series. Most notable was the made-for-MySpace series the MySpace Road Tour produced by FremantleMedia Australia. The first series, which ran from July to October 2008 drew the MySpace audience and the show received positive press.

During MipCom in October 2008 MySpace announced plans for a second series and indicated that it was in talks with cable network Foxtel to distribute series 1 on network television. Additionally MySpace spoke of their plans to produce versions of the MySpace Road Tour in other countries.

2009:

The International Academy of Web Television formed in 2009, followed by the first awards program for the web television industry, called the Streamy Awards.

The emerging potential for success in web video caught the attention of top entertainment executives in America, including former Disney executive and current head of the Tornante Company, Michael Eisner. Torante's Vuguru subdivision partnered with Canadian media conglomerate Rogers Media on October 26, securing plans to produce upwards of 30 new web shows a year.

Rogers Media agreed to help fund and distribute Vuguru's upcoming productions, thereby solidifying a connection between old and new media.

2010–present:

Several produced-for-web shows gained mainstream popularity and media coverage in 2012, 2013, and 2014, including House of Cards, Orange Is the New Black, and the revival of Arrested Development on Netflix.

Amazon Studios produced a number of shows for Amazon Video, including Alpha House, Betas, and various situation comedy and children's shows. Amazon's Transparent, went on to win a Golden Globe for Best Series.

There were brief revivals of the long running soap operas All My Children and One Life to Live on Hulu and iTunes before the shows were cancelled again a short time later.

On July 13, 2015, Comcast, a cable company announced an HBO plus broadcast TV package at a price discounted from basic broadband plus basic cable.

On November 12, 2019, The Walt Disney Company launched Disney+, debuting many original exclusive web series including The Mandalorian and The World According to Jeff Goldblum.

Production and distribution:

The rise in the popularity of the Internet and improvements in streaming video technology mean that producing and distributing a web series is relatively cheap by traditional standards and allows producers to reach a potentially global audience who can access the shows 24 hours a day.

Methods used for distributing online television:
Technologies: See also: ​







Netflix, including a List of the Best Shows on Netflix (by Digital Trends) Pictured below: "How Netflix Is Trying to Make Sure Its Shows Don’t Get Lost"
Click here for a List of the Best Shows on Netflix according to  Digital Trends (June, 2018)​​

Netflix, Inc. is an American over-the-top media services provider, headquartered in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, the company's primary business is its subscription-based streaming service, which offers online streaming of a library of films and television programs including those produced in-house.

Netflix's initial business model included DVD sales and rental by mail, although Hastings jettisoned DVD sales about a year after Netflix's founding to focus on the DVD rental business. 

In 2007, Netflix expanded its business with the introduction of streaming media, while retaining the DVD and Blu-ray rental service. The company expanded internationally, with streaming made available to Canada in 2010 and continued growing its streaming service from there; by January 2016, Netflix services operated in over 190 countries – it is available worldwide except Mainland China, Syria, North Korea and Crimea.

Netflix entered the content-production industry in 2012, debuting its first series, Lilyhammer. It has greatly expanded the production of both film and television series since then, offering "Netflix Original" content through its online library of films and television. Netflix released an estimated 126 original series or films in 2016, more than any other network or cable channel.

As of April 2018, Netflix had 125 million total subscribers worldwide, including 56.71 million in the United States. Their efforts to produce new content, secure the rights for additional content, and diversify through 190 countries has resulted in the company racking up billions in long-term debt: $21.9 billion as of September 2017, up from $16.8 billion from the same time the previous year, although only $6.5 billion of this is long-term debt; the remaining are long-term obligations.

Netflix's headquarters are located at 121 Albright Way, Los Gatos, California, United States. They also have other offices in the Netherlands, Brazil, India, Japan, and South Korea.

Click on any of the following blue hyperlinks for more about Netflix:







Streaming Television, including a List of Internet TV ProvidersPictured below: The Four Companies Taking Over TV Based Streaming
Click here for a List of Internet Television Providers. in the United States

Streaming television (also known as streaming TV, online TV, Internet TV, or TV streaming) is the digital distribution of television content, such as TV shows, as streaming video delivered over the Internet.

Streaming TV stands in contrast to dedicated terrestrial television delivered by over-the-air aerial systems, cable television, and/or satellite television systems.

Click on any of the following blue hyperlinks for more about Streaming Television:







Streaming Media, including a List of Streaming Media ServicesPictured below: How Streaming Video and Audio Work
Click here for a List of Streaming Media Services.​

Streaming media is multimedia that is constantly received by and presented to an end-user while being delivered by a provider.

The verb "to stream" refers to the process of delivering or obtaining media in this manner; the term refers to the delivery method of the medium, rather than the medium itself, and is an alternative to file downloading, a process in which the end-user obtains the entire file for the content before watching or listening to it.

A client end-user can use their media player to start playing digital video or digital audio content before the entire file has been transmitted.

Distinguishing delivery method from the media distributed applies specifically to telecommunications networks, as most of the delivery systems are either inherently streaming (e.g. radio, television, streaming apps) or inherently non-streaming (e.g. books, video cassettes, audio CDs).

For example, in the 1930s, elevator music was among the earliest popular music available as streaming media; nowadays Internet television is a common form of streamed media. The term "streaming media" can apply to media other than video and audio, such as live closed captioning, ticker tape, and real-time text, which are all considered "streaming text".

Live streaming is the delivery of Internet content in real-time much as live television broadcasts content over the airwaves via a television signal. Live internet streaming requires a form of source media (e.g. a video camera, an audio interface, screen capture software), an encoder to digitize the content, a media publisher, and a content delivery network to distribute and deliver the content. Live streaming does not need to be recorded at the origination point, although it frequently is.

There are challenges with streaming content on the Internet. For example, users whose Internet connection lacks sufficient bandwidth may experience stops, lags, or slow buffering of the content. And users lacking compatible hardware or software systems may be unable to stream certain content.

Some popular streaming services include Hulu, Netflix, Prime Video, the video sharing website YouTube, and other sites which stream films and television shows; Apple Music and Spotify, which stream music; and video game live streaming sites such as Mixer and Twitch.

Click on any of the following blue hyperlinks for more about Streaming Media:







House of Cards (American TV series) (Netflix) Pictured below (L) Robin Wright as Claire Underwood; (R) Kevin Spacey as Frank Underwood
House of Cards is an American political thriller web television series created by Beau Willimon. It is an adaptation of the 1990 BBC miniseries of the same title and based on the novel of the same title by Michael Dobbs. The first 13-episode season was released on February 1, 2013, on the streaming service Netflix.

House of Cards is set in Washington, D.C. and is the story of Congressman Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey), a Democrat from South Carolina's 5th congressional district and House Majority Whip, and his equally ambitious wife Claire Underwood (Robin Wright). Frank is passed over for appointment as Secretary of State, so he initiates an elaborate plan to attain power, aided by Claire. The series deals with themes of ruthless pragmatism, manipulation, betrayal, and power.

House of Cards has received positive reviews and several award nominations, including 33 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including for Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor for Spacey, and Outstanding Lead Actress for Wright. It is the first original online-only web television series to receive major Emmy nominations.

The show also earned eight Golden Globe Award nominations, with Wright winning for Best Actress – Television Series Drama in 2014 and Spacey winning for Best Actor – Television Series Drama in 2015.

On October 30, 2017, following sexual misconduct allegations against Spacey, Netflix announced that the sixth season would be the final season. On November 3, 2017, Netflix announced that Spacey was removed from the show. On December 4, 2017, Netflix announced that the season would consist of eight episodes and would start production in early 2018, without Spacey's involvement. It was released on November 2, 2018.

Click on any of the following blue hyperlinks for more about the Netflix series "House of Cards":




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Orange is the New Black (Netflix)Pictured below: ​'Orange Is the New Black' Season 7 Coming Late 2019
By ALLISON SCHONTER - April 19, 2019 03:42 pm EDT
Orange Is the New Black (sometimes abbreviated to OITNB) is an American comedy-drama web television series created by Jenji Kohan for Netflix.

The series is based on Piper Kerman's memoir, Orange Is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison (2010), about her experiences at FCI Danbury, a minimum-security federal prison.

Produced by Tilted Productions in association with Lionsgate Television, Orange Is the New Black premiered on Netflix on July 11, 2013. In February 2016, the series was renewed for a fifth, sixth, and seventh season. On October 17, 2018, it was confirmed that the seventh season, which was released on July 26, 2019, would be its last.

Orange Is the New Black has become Netflix's most-watched original series. It was widely acclaimed throughout its run, and has received many accolades. For its first season, the series garnered 12 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including Outstanding Comedy Series, Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series, and Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series, winning three.

A new Emmy rule in 2015 forced the series to change categories from comedy to drama.

For its second season, the series received four Emmy nominations, including Outstanding Drama Series, and Uzo Aduba won for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. Orange Is the New Black is the first series to score Emmy nominations in both comedy and drama categories.

The series has also received six Golden Globe Award nominations, six Writers Guild of America Award nominations, a Producers Guild of America Award, an American Film Institute award, and a Peabody Award.

Plot:
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The series begins revolving around Piper Chapman (Taylor Schilling), a woman in her thirties living in New York City who is sentenced to 15 months in Litchfield Penitentiary, a minimum-security women's federal prison in upstate New York.

Chapman was convicted of transporting a suitcase full of drug money for her girlfriend Alex Vause (Laura Prepon), an international drug smuggler. The offense had occurred 10 years prior to the start of the series and in that time Piper had moved on to a quiet, law-abiding life among New York's upper middle class.

Her sudden and unexpected indictment disrupts her relationships with her fiancé, family and friends.

In prison, Chapman is reunited with Vause (who named Chapman in her trial, resulting in Chapman's arrest) and they re-examine their relationship. Simultaneously, Chapman, along with the other inmates, attempt to grapple with prison's numerous, inherent struggles.

Episodes often feature flashbacks of significant events from various inmates' and prison guards' pasts. These flashbacks typically depict how an inmate came to be in prison or develop a character's backstory. The prison is initially operated by the "Federal Department of Corrections" (a fictional version of the Federal Bureau of Prisons), and was in a later season acquired by the Management & Correction Corporation (MCC), a private prison company.

The fifth season shows the prisoners revolting against the guards, wardens and the system after MCC's failed handling of an inmate's death at the hands of a guard in the fourth season.

The inmate death had followed a peaceful protest and subsequent instigation of an inmate fight by another guard. Fueled by the conditions the inmates are forced to tolerate, as well as grudges against the prison guards, a three-day riot ensues.

During the riot, some inmates attempt to negotiate better living conditions and seek justice for the death of the inmate, while others pursue their own interests and entertainment, and a few seek no involvement. At the emergence of the riot, the guard who incited the fight in the prior season is critically wounded by an inmate who took the gun the guard illegally brought into the prison.

At the end of the season, SWAT raids the prison to end the riot and remove all inmates from the facility. During this raid, a correctional officer is fatally wounded by a corrupt "strike team", which then conspires to blame the guard's death on inmates who hid in an underground bunker and had taken the guard hostage. All inmates are transported to other prisons.

The consequences of the riot are shown in the sixth season. A number of the inmates, including Chapman and Vause, are transported to Litchfield Maximum Security. Most of these inmates are interrogated, and several of them charged and sentenced for their involvement in the riot.

In max, new inmates are introduced, alliances are made, and a gang-like war emerges between two prison blocks, spearheaded by a longstanding feud between two sisters and a grudge harbored by them toward a former maximum-security inmate who returned. Inmates who arrived from the minimum security prison are either caught up or willingly participate in the war between prison blocks. The season portrays further corruption and guard brutality.

The seventh season tries to provide an ending to the various inmate stories. Chapman and Vause continue their on/off again relationship. The season shows how some prisoners are able to move beyond their time in prison while others are captured by the system and through their own flaws unable to progress.

In addition to the established setting of Litchfield Max, a significant portion of the season takes place in a newly created ICE detention centre for detained presumed illegal immigrants, showing their struggles and lack of access to outside help.

Throughout the series, it is shown how various forms of corruption, funding cuts, privatization of prison, overcrowding, guard brutality and racial discrimination (among other issues), affect the prisoners' safety, health and well-being, the correctional officers, and the prison's basic ability to fulfill its fundamental responsibilities and ethical obligations as a corrections institution.

One of the show's key conflicts involves the minimum-security prison's Director of Human Activities, Joe Caputo, whose efforts and aims as a warden constantly conflict with the corporate interests of MCC, which acquired the facility when it was about to be shut down.

Click on any of the following blue hyperlinks for more about the Netflix series "Orange is the New Black":

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Webby Awards, including a List of Winners of the Webby AwardsPictured below: Webby Awards Red Carpet Goes Viral (Pictured Taylor Schilling of "Orange is the New Black" (see preceding topic, above)
Click here for a Listing by Year of Webby Award Winners.

A Webby Award is an award for excellence on the Internet presented annually by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a judging body composed of over two thousand industry experts and technology innovators.

Categories include websites, advertising and media, online film and video, mobile sites and apps, and social.

Two winners are selected in each category, one by members of The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, and one by the public who cast their votes during Webby People’s Voice voting. Each winner presents a five-word acceptance speech, a trademark of the annual awards show.

Hailed as the "Internet’s highest honor," the award is one of the oldest Internet-oriented awards, and is associated with the phrase "The Oscars of the Internet."

History:
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The Webby Awards began in 1996, sponsored by the Academy of Web Design and Cool Site of the Day. The first Webby Awards were produced by Kay Dangaard at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel as a nod to the first site of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (Oscars). That first year, they were called "Webbie" Awards. The first "Site of the Year" winner was the pioneer webisodic serial The Spot.

Today's Webby Awards were founded by Tiffany Shlain when she was hired by The Web Magazine to re-establish them. The event was held in San Francisco from 1996 to 2004 and quickly became known for their "5 word Acceptance Speeches".

After the first year the awards became more successful than the magazine and IDG closed the publication. Shlain continued to run The Webby Awards with the help of Maya Draisin until 2004.

The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, which selects the winners of The Webby Awards, was established in 1998 by co-founders Tiffany Shlain, Spencer Ante and Maya Draisin.

Members of the Academy include: 
The Webby Awards is owned and operated by the Webby Media Group, a division of Recognition Media, which also owns and produces the Lovie Awards in Europe and Netted by the Webbys, a daily email publication launched in 2009.

David-Michel Davies, CEO of Webby Media Group, current Executive Director of the Webby Awards and co-founder of Internet Week New York, was named Executive Director of the Webby Awards in 2005.

In 2009, the 13th Annual Webby Awards received nearly 10,000 entries from all 50 states and over 60 countries. That same year, more than 500,000 votes were cast in The Webby People's Voice Awards. In 2012, the 16th Annual Webby awards received 1.5 million votes from more than 200 countries for the People's Voice awards. 

In 2015, the 19th Annual Webby Awards received nearly 13,000 entries from all 50 U.S. states and over 60 countries worldwide.

Nomination process:

During the Call for Entries phase, each entry is rated by Associate Members of the International Academy of Digital Arts & Sciences. Entries that receive the highest marks during this first round of voting are included on category-specific shortlists and further evaluated by Executive Members of the Academy.

Executive Academy Members with category-specific expertise evaluate the shortlisted entries based on the appropriate Website, Advertising & Media, Online Film & Video, Mobile Sites & Apps, and Social category criteria, and cast ballots to determine Webby Honorees, Nominees and Webby Winners. Deloitte provides vote tabulation consulting for the Webby Awards.

In addition to the award given in each category by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, another winner is selected in each category as determined by the general public during People’s Voice voting. Winners of both the Academy-selected and People’s Voice-selected awards are invited to the Webbys.

Awards granted:
See also: List of Webby Award winners

The Webby Awards are presented in over a hundred categories among all four types of entries. A website can be entered in multiple categories and receive multiple awards.

In each category, two awards are handed out: a Webby Award selected by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, and a People's Voice Award selected by the general public.

Past winners include: 
Each year, the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences also honors individuals with Webby Special Achievement Awards. Past Webby Special Achievement winners include: 
Ceremony:

Since 2005, The Webby Awards has been presented in New York City. 

Comedian Rob Corddry hosted the ceremony from 2005 to 2007. Seth Meyers of Saturday Night Live hosted in 2008 and 2009, B.J. Novak of NBC's The Office in 2010, and Lisa Kudrow in 2011. Comedian, actor, and writer Patton Oswalt hosted from 2012 to 2014. Comedian Hannibal Buress hosted in 2015.

The Webbys are famous for limiting recipients to five-word speeches, which are often humorous, although some exceed the limit.

In 2005 when accepting his Lifetime Achievement Award, former Vice President Al Gore's speech was "Please don't recount this vote." He was introduced by Vint Cerf who used the same format to state, "We all invented the Internet."

In 2008, Stephen Colbert shouted “Me. Me. Me. Me. Me” when accepting his award for Webby Person of the Year. Accepting the award for Best Political Blog in 2008, Arianna Huffington’s speech was “President Obama ... Sounds good, right?"

Other popular speeches include:
In 2013, the creator of the Graphics Interchange Format (GIF), Steve Wilhite, accepted his Webby and delivered his now famous five-word speech, "It’s pronounced 'Jif' not 'Gif'."

Criticism:

The Webbys have been criticized for their pay-to-enter and pay-to-attend policy (winners and nominees also have to pay to attend the award ceremony), and thus for not taking most websites into consideration before distributing their awards.
​
Gawker, its Valleywag column, and others, have called the awards a scam, with Valleywag saying, "...somewhere along the way, the organizers figured out that this goofy charade could be milked for profit."

In response, Webby Awards executive director David-Michel Davies told the Wall Street Journal that entry fees “provide the best and most sustainable model for ensuring that our judging process remains consistent and rigorous and is not dependent on things like sponsorships that can fluctuate from year to year.”

See also:







Smart TVPictured below: 5 Best Smart TVs Of 2019 (Forbes)
A Smart TV, also known as a connected TV (CTV), is a traditional television set with integrated Internet and interactive Web 2.0 features which allows users to stream music and videos, browse the internet, and view photos.

Smart TV is a technological convergence of computers, television sets and set-top boxes.

Besides the traditional functions of television sets and set-top boxes provided through traditional broadcasting media, these devices can also provide Internet TV, online interactive media, over-the-top content (OTT), as well as on-demand streaming media, and home networking access.

Smart TV should not be confused with Internet TV, IPTV or Web television. Internet TV refers to receiving television content over the Internet instead of traditional systems such as terrestrial, cable and satellite, regardless how the Internet is delivered. IPTV is one of the Internet television technology standards for use by television broadcasters. Web television is a term used for programs created by a wide variety of companies and individuals for broadcast on Internet TV.

In smart TVs, the operating system is preloaded or is available through the set-top box.

The software applications or "apps" can be preloaded into the device, or updated or installed on demand via an app store or marketplace, in a similar manner to how the apps are integrated in modern smartphones.

The technology that enables smart TVs is also incorporated in external devices such as set-top boxes and some Blu-ray players, game consoles, digital media players, hotel television systems, smartphones, and other network-connected interactive devices that utilize television-type display outputs. These devices allow viewers to find and play videos, movies, TV shows, photos and other content from the Web, cable or satellite TV channel, or from a local storage device.

Definition:
​
A smart TV device is either a television set with integrated Internet capabilities or a set-top box for television that offers more advanced computing ability and connectivity than a contemporary basic television set.

Smart TVs may be thought of as an information appliance or the computer system from a mobile device integrated within a television set unit, as such a smart TV often allows the user to install and run more advanced applications or plugins/addons based on a specific platform.

Smart TVs run a complete operating system or mobile operating system software providing a platform for application developers.

Smart TV platforms or middleware have a public software development kit (SDK) and/or native development kit (NDK) for apps so that third-party developers can develop applications for it, and an app store so that the end-users can install and uninstall apps themselves.

The public SDK enables third-party companies and other interactive application developers to “write” applications once and see them run successfully on any device that supports the smart TV platform or middleware architecture which it was written for, no matter who the hardware manufacturer is.

Smart TVs deliver content (such as photos, movies and music) from other computers or network attached storage devices on a network using either a Digital Living Network Alliance / Universal Plug and Play media server or similar service program like Windows Media Player or Network-attached storage (NAS), or via iTunes.

It also provides access to Internet-based services including traditional broadcast TV channels, catch-up services, video-on-demand (VOD), electronic program guide, interactive advertising, personalisation, voting, games, social networking, and other multimedia applications.

Smart TV enables access to movies, shows, video games, apps and more. Some of those apps include Netflix, Spotify, YouTube, and Amazon.

History:

In the early 1980s, "intelligent" television receivers were introduced in Japan. The addition of an LSI chip with memory and a character generator to a television receiver enabled Japanese viewers to receive a mix of programming and information transmitted over spare lines of the broadcast television signal.

A patent was published in 1994 (and extended the following year) for an "intelligent" television system, linked with data processing systems, by means of a digital or analog network. Apart from being linked to data networks, one key point is its ability to automatically download necessary software routines, according to a user's demand, and process their needs.

The mass acceptance of digital television in late 2000s and early 2010s greatly improved smart TVs. Major TV manufacturers have announced production of smart TVs only, for their middle-end to high-end TVs in 2015. Smart TVs are expected to become the dominant form of television by the late 2010s. At the beginning of 2016, Nielsen reported that 29 percent of those with incomes over $75,000 a year had a smart TV.

Typical features:
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Smart TV devices also provide access to user-generated content (either stored on an external hard drive or in cloud storage) and to interactive services and Internet applications, such as YouTube, many using HTTP Live Streaming (also known as HLS) adaptive streaming.

Smart TV devices facilitate the curation of traditional content by combining information from the Internet with content from TV providers. Services offer users a means to track and receive reminders about shows or sporting events, as well as the ability to change channels for immediate viewing.

Some devices feature additional interactive organic user interface / natural user interface technologies for navigation controls and other human interaction with a Smart TV, with such as second screen companion devices, spatial gestures input like with Xbox Kinect, and even for speech recognition for natural language user interface.

Smart TV develops new features to satisfy consumers and companies, such as new payment processes. LG and PaymentWall have collaborated to allow consumers to access purchased apps, movies, games, and more using a remote control, laptop, tablet, or smartphone. This is intended for an easier and more convenient way for checkout.

Platforms:
​See also: List of smart TV platforms and middleware software

"Television app" redirects here. It is not to be confused with Apple's TV app.

Smart TV technology and software is still evolving, with both proprietary and open source software frameworks already available. These can run applications (sometimes available via an 'app store' digital distribution platform), interactive on-demand media, personalized communications, and have social networking features.
​
Framework platforms managed by individual companies include:
Smart TV are framework platforms managed by individual companies. HbbTV, provided by the Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV association, CE-HTML, part of Web4CE, OIPF, part of HbbTV, and Tru2way are framework platforms managed by technology businesses.

Current Smart TV platforms used by vendors are: 
​Sony, Panasonic, Samsung, LG, and Roku TV are some platforms ranked under the best Smart TV platforms.

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Web to TVPictured below: Best Smart TV 2019: every smart TV platform and which set does it best
A Web-to-TV installation provides a way to show web television or other over-the-top content from the Internet, to a television set.

Various technologies to do this include Home theater PCs (desktop computers running more user-friendly software for TV viewing), digital media receivers (also known as "media extenders", replaying content from a local area network), and Smart TVs (television sets and set-top boxes with Internet capabilities).

Media extenders:

Several companies provide media extenders including Netgear and Dlink. Advanced game consoles - Xbox 360 from Microsoft, PS3 from Sony, and the Nintendo Wii - can be configured to stream or view content delivered from a PC on the user's home network.

LocalCasting:

A new entry from HDMI to Coax connects to the VGA output of a home PC/server and LocalCasts (transmits) it throughout the users house over the existing coax wiring as a normal HD Dolby 5.1 channel that is directly tunable by all connected HDTV's.

A unique benefit of this approach is that no additional boxes are required at each TV because only single LocalCast device is required to insert a private channel on the homes coax distribution system.

In order to do this the monitor output of the PC is digitized, MPEG2 compressed, and QAM encoded all at HD resolution and in real-time.

The LocalCasting PC is controlled with an RF remote or RF keyboard that includes a pointing device to provide normal interactivity with any PC application within a range suitable for the normal home. Another important benefit of this over-the-top approach is that it provides the broadest access to internet content because it supports any content or application that can be viewed on a PC.

Video on demand:

HD Encodulators are a new class of device in Digital Video Broadcast (DVB). Encodulators are devices that bundle a digital encoder and an RF agile modulator into one package.

Encodulators accept uncompressed video as either HD or SD and encode the source to an MPEG transport stream. This transport stream can be based on either MPEG-2 or MPEG-4(H.264) broadcasting codecs. Once the video is encoded it is passed on to the modulator component of the device.

The agile modulator overlays the MPEG transport stream onto a high frequency carrier wave for DTV broadcast. In the US this is typically in the 50 - 900 MHz range for terrestrial television, and 900 - 2600 MHz for satellite distribution. Standards used for terrestrial broadcast are 8-level Vestigial Sideband Modulation (8VSB) for over the air, and Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) for cable TV.

A typical example of an encodulator are the units from Thor Broadcast. These units include both a high definition encoder and a frequency agile modulator for all major DVB modulation types. Many more manufacturers are moving to this sort of consolidated hardware platform.

In the last year other manufacturers such as Comlan have released similar units. In the future we will see more and more broadcasting companies moving to consolidated equipment, both to save on rackspace and on cost.

Content subscription:

KylinTV provides a "box" that serves a number of Chinese language web channels. The service is sold on a monthly subscription basis. Time Warner cable announced plans to offer a web to TV solution.

Internet-ready TV:

Sony Bravia Internet Link provides Web to TV without a PC.

Sony has also announced plans to integrate this functionality into future TVs. Several major TV suppliers have made similar claims. The advent of high performance, low cost processors from ARM and Intel will ultimately bring the Web to (every) TV.

See also:







Dead to Me (Netflix)Pictured below: This 2019 Clio Entertainment Shortlisted entry titled 'Dead to Me Billboard' was entered for Netflix.
​Dead to Me is an American black comedy web television series created by Liz Feldman which premiered on May 3, 2019 on Netflix. The series stars Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini as grieving women who bond during therapy.

The series is executive produced by Feldman, Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, and Jessica Elbaum.

The first season received positive reviews. In June 2019, Netflix renewed the series for a second season. At the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards, Applegate received a nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series.

Premise:

Dead to Me is about "a powerful friendship that blossoms between Jen (Applegate) and Judy (Cardellini). Jen is a recently widowed real estate agent trying to come to terms with her loss through therapy, exercise, and other methods. She uses anger and resentment as an outlet for her grief.

This is how she meets Judy, who is a part of a therapy group composed of bereft spouses. Jen is mourning her husband, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver, while Judy grieves for her fiancé, who died of a heart attack.

The two characters face their loss differently as Jen finds herself in a dark place, struggling with her grief while Judy maintains a positive disposition. This difference quickly leads to a deep bond between the two. However, Judy keeps a dark secret that causes a disturbing plot twist. She was involved in the death of her friend's husband. Jen becomes more unhinged as she unravels the mystery of her husband's death and secret life.

Cast and Characters:
​
Main:
  • Christina Applegate as Jen Harding, a real estate agent whose husband Ted was killed by a hit-and-run driver.
  • Linda Cardellini as Judy Hale, a woman that Jen met at a grief support group who befriends her. Unbeknownst to Jen, Judy is the person who hit and killed her husband.
  • James Marsden as Steve Wood (season 1), Judy's ex-fiancé who is an attorney.
  • Max Jenkins as Christopher Doyle, Jen's real estate business partner and friend.
  • Sam McCarthy as Charlie Harding, Jen's older son.
  • Luke Roessler as Henry Harding, Jen's younger son.

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Contents







Arrested Development* -- Watch Mojo
Pictured:  The Cast of 'Arrested Development,' Then and Now
Arrested Development is an American television sitcom created by Mitchell Hurwitz, which originally aired on Fox for three seasons from November 2, 2003, to February 10, 2006.

The show follows the Bluths, a formerly wealthy dysfunctional family. It is presented in a serialized format, incorporating handheld camera work, voice-over narration, archival photos, and historical footage.

The show also maintains numerous running gags and catchphrases. Ron Howard serves as both an executive producer and the omniscient narrator and, in later seasons, appears in the show portraying a fictionalized version of himself.

Set in Newport Beach, California, Arrested Development was filmed primarily in Culver City and Marina del Rey.

The series received critical acclaim, six Primetime Emmy Awards, and one Golden Globe Award, and attracted a cult following. It has been named one of the greatest TV shows by publications including Time, Entertainment Weekly, and IGN. It influenced later single-camera comedy series such as 30 Rock and Community.

Despite critical acclaim, Arrested Development received low ratings and viewership on Fox, which canceled the series in 2006.

In 2011, Netflix agreed to license new episodes and distribute them exclusively on its video streaming service. These episodes were released in May 2013. Netflix commissioned a fifth season of Arrested Development, the first half of which premiered on May 29, 2018, and the second half on March 15, 2019.

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Apple TV+ Streaming ServicePictured below: Apple TV+, home of Apple Originals from the world’s greatest storytellers, is now available
​Apple TV+ is an over-the-top ad-free subscription video on demand web television service of Apple Inc. that debuted on November 1, 2019. It was announced during their March 25 Apple Special Event held at Steve Jobs Theater, where celebrities involved with Apple TV+ projects appeared on-stage for the announcement, including Jennifer Aniston, Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg and Jason Momoa.

Apple TV+ content is viewable through Apple's website and through Apple's TV app, which in 2019 expanded its availability to numerous consumer electronics devices, including those of Apple's competitors, with further plans to expand availability to more devices over time.

However, Apple has created no native app for the Windows and Android platforms, or an official method to stream the content on television-connected Android TV and Chromecast devices, leaving users of those devices to workarounds for viewing Apple TV+.

At debut, Apple TV+ was accessible in about 100 countries and dependent territories, fewer than the early reported target of a global launch in 150 countries, and not including a number of the highest population countries in the world, within some of which Apple sells other content generally. 

However, commentators note that the fairly wide initial reach of the service will offer it an advantage over other streaming services debuting at approximately the same time in a more limited number of countries, such as Disney+, and that because Apple distributes its own content through the service instead of the third-party licensed content used by more established streaming services like Hulu, it will not be hamstrung by international content licensing issues during global expansion.
​
Apple TV+, along with the simultaneously announced Apple TV Channels a la carte premium video subscription aggregation service, is part of the company's concerted effort to expand its service revenues by making recurring monthly charge distributed video content available widely to the public.

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Amazon Prime Video Streaming ServicePictured below: Amazon Prime Video Review by PC Magazine
Prime Video, also marketed as Amazon Prime Video, is an American Internet video on demand service that is developed, owned, and operated by Amazon. It offers television shows and films for rent or purchase and Prime Video, a selection of Amazon Studios original content and licensed acquisitions included in the Amazon's Prime subscription.

In the UK, US, Germany, Sweden, and Austria, access to Prime Video is also available through a video-only membership, which does not require a full Prime subscription.

In France and Italy, Rent or Buy and Prime Video are not available on the Amazon website and Prime Video content is only accessible through a dedicated website. In some countries Prime Video additionally offers Amazon Channels, which allows viewers to subscribe to other suppliers' content, including HBO in the United States.

Launched on September 7, 2006 as Amazon Unbox in the United States, the service grew with its expanding library, and added the Prime Video membership with the development of Prime. It was then renamed as Amazon Instant Video on Demand. After acquiring the local streaming and DVD-by-mail service LoveFilm in 2011, Prime Video was added to Prime in the United Kingdom, Germany and Austria in 2014, a move that angered some Prime UK members as the bundling was non-negotiable with a 61% increase in subscription fee.

In the UK, Germany, and Austria, Prime Video has been available on a monthly subscription of £5.99 or €7.99 per month, continuing the plan of LoveFilm Instant. The service was previously available in Norway, Denmark and Sweden in 2012, but was discontinued in 2013. 

On April 18, 2016, Amazon split Prime Video from Amazon Prime in the US for $8.99 per month. The service also hosts Amazon Original content alongside titles on Video as well.

On December 14, 2016, Prime Video launched worldwide (except for Mainland China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria) expanding its reach beyond the US, the UK, Germany, Austria, and Japan.

Among the new territories, the service was included with Prime in Belgium, Canada, France, India, Italy, Spain, Poland, and Brazil, while for all other countries – for instance Bulgaria – it was made available for a monthly promotional price of $/€2.99 per month for the first six months and $/€5.99 per month thereafter.

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Over-the-top Media Service Providers Pictured below: The global OTT video services platform market is growing in population. It comprises of players from both domestic & international circuits. Finding the top OTT platform providers in this highly fragmented industry is a task easier said than done.
An over-the-top (OTT) media service is a streaming media service offered directly to viewers via the Internet. OTT bypasses cable, broadcast, and satellite television platforms, the companies that traditionally act as a controller or distributor of such content.

The term is most synonymous with subscription-based video-on-demand (SVoD) services that offer access to film and television content (including existing series acquired from other producers, as well as original content produced specifically for the service). Examples include the following:
OTT also encompasses a wave of "skinny" television services that offer access to live streams of linear specialty channels, similar to a traditional satellite or cable TV provider, but streamed over the public Internet, rather than a closed, private network with proprietary equipment such as set-top boxes.

Over-the-top services are typically accessed via websites on personal computers, as well as via apps on mobile devices (such as smartphones and tablets), digital media players (including video game consoles), or televisions with integrated Smart TV platforms.


Definitions:

In 2011, the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), Canada's telecom regulator, stated that it "considers that Internet access to programming independent of a facility or network dedicated to its delivery (via, for example, cable or satellite) is the defining feature of what have been termed 'over-the-top' services".

In contrast to video on demand video-delivery systems offered by cable and IPTV, which are tightly managed networks where channels can be changed instantly, some OTT services such as iTunes require that the video be downloaded first and then played, while other OTT players such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video, offer movie downloads that start playing before the download completes (streaming).

The FCC categorizes the OTT services into two groups: multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs); and online video distributors (OVDs).

Virtual MVPDs include such varied services as AT&T TV, fuboTV, Sling TV, Hulu with Live TV , and YouTube TV.

An OVD was defined by the FCC as any entity that provides video programming by means of the Internet or other Internet Protocol (IP)-based transmission path where the transmission path is provided by a person other than the OVD.

An OVD does not include an MVPD inside its MVPD footprint or an MVPD to the extent it is offering online video programming as a component of an MVPD subscription to customers whose homes are inside its MVPD footprint.

Background:

In broadcasting, over-the-top (OTT) content is the audio, video, and other media content delivered over the Internet, without the involvement of a multiple-system operator (MSO) in the control or distribution of the content.

The Internet provider may be aware of the contents of the Internet Protocol (IP) packets but is not responsible for, nor able to control, the viewing abilities, copyrights, and/or other redistribution of the content.

This model contrasts with the purchasing or rental of video or audio content from an Internet service provider (ISP), such as pay television, video on demand, and from internet protocol television (IPTV). OTT refers to content from a third party that is delivered to an end-user, with the ISP simply transporting IP packets.

Types of content:

OTT television, usually called online television or internet television or streaming television, remains the most popular OTT content. This signal is received over the Internet or through a cell phone network, as opposed to receiving the television signal from a terrestrial broadcast or satellite.

Access is controlled by the video distributor, through either an app or a separate OTT dongle or box, connected to a phone, PC or smart television set. By mid-2017, 58 per cent of US households would access one in a given month and advertising revenues from OTT channels exceeded those from web browser plug-ins.

The record of simultaneous users watching an OTT event was set at 18.6 million by Disney's Indian video streaming platform Hotstar.

OTT messaging is defined as instant messaging services or online chat provided by third parties, as an alternative to text messaging services provided by a mobile network operator.

An example is the Facebook-owned mobile application WhatsApp, that serves to replace text messaging on Internet connected smartphones. Other providers of OTT messaging include Viber, WeChat, Skype, Telegram and Google Allo.

OTT voice calling, usually called VOIP, capabilities, for instance, as provided by Skype, WeChat, Viber, and WhatsApp use open internet communication protocols to replace and sometimes enhance existing operator controlled services offered by mobile phone operators.

Modes of access:

Consumers can access OTT content through Internet-connected devices such as phones (including Android, iOS, and Windows-type mobile devices), smart TVs (such as Google TV and LG Electronics' Channel Plus), set-top boxes (such as Apple TV, Nvidia Shield, Fire TV, and Roku), gaming consoles (such as the PlayStation 4, Wii U, and Xbox One), tablets, and desktop and laptop computers.

​As of 2019, Android and iOS users make up more than 45% of the total OTT content streaming audience, while 39% of users use the web to access OTT content.

​See also:







​Ozark (Netflix: 2017-2022) Pictured below: Ozark season 3 on Netflix: when will it air, who’s in the cast and what’s going to happen?
Ozark is an American crime drama web television series created by Bill Dubuque and Mark Williams for Netflix and produced by Media Rights Capital.

Jason Bateman stars as the lead character in the series; he has also directed four episodes in season 1 and two episodes in season 2.

The first season of ten episodes was released on July 21, 2017; the second season of ten episodes was released on August 31, 2018, and the series was renewed for a third season on October 10, 2018.

Bateman plays financial planner Marty Byrde, and Laura Linney plays his wife Wendy, a public relations consultant on political campaigns who became a housewife before the family moved to the Ozarks.

​​Premise:

Economic advisor Martin “Marty” Byrde suddenly relocates the family from the Chicago suburb of Naperville to the summer resort community of Osage Beach, Missouri, after a money laundering scheme goes wrong, and he must make amends to a Mexican drug cartel by setting up a bigger laundering operation in the Ozarks. When the Byrdes arrive in Missouri, they become entangled with local criminals including the Langmores and Snells.

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Bloodline (Netflix: 2015-2017)  Pictured below: Best New TV Show Of 2015 Belongs To Netflix, ‘Bloodline,’ A Tragic Masterpiece, ✩✩✩✩, Review By Steven Brittingham, Highlight Hollywood News​.
Bloodline is an American Netflix original thriller–drama web television series created by Todd A. Kessler, Glenn Kessler, and Daniel Zelman, and produced by Sony Pictures Television.

The series premiered on February 9, 2015, in the Berlinale Special Galas section of the 65th Berlin International Film Festival, and the 13-episode first season premiered in its entirety, on Netflix, on March 20, 2015.

On March 31, 2015, Bloodline was renewed for a 10-episode second season that debuted on May 27, 2016. On July 13, 2016, Netflix renewed Bloodline for a 10-episode third season, later confirmed to be the final season. The third and final season was released on May 26, 2017.

The first season received positive reviews from many critics, with most praising its performances (particularly for Ben Mendelsohn and Kyle Chandler) and cinematography. However, the second and final seasons received mixed responses from critics.

Plot:
See also: List of Bloodline episodes

​Season 1 (2015):

The series begins with narration by John Rayburn: "Sometimes you know something's coming. You can feel it. In the air. In your gut. And you don't sleep at night. The voice in your head is telling you that something is going to go terribly wrong and there's nothing you can do to stop it. That's how I felt when my brother came home."

Danny Rayburn returns home to Islamorada, Florida, for the 45th anniversary of his parents' Robert and Sally Rayburn's seaside hotel, the Rayburn House – a pier will be dedicated in their honor to mark the occasion.

Danny is the black sheep of the family, with a poor reputation among them, including his three younger siblings: John, Kevin, and Meg. John is a detective with the local sheriff's office, Kevin owns a local marina, and Meg is an attorney with a local law firm. Danny wants to make his return permanent as he wishes to stay to help his parents at their inn.

Robert is reluctant to let Danny stay, but leaves it up to the three siblings to decide Danny's fate.

The siblings decide against Danny staying as they conclude that he will only break their mother's heart in the end. John breaks the news to Danny, but lies to him by telling him it was their father who wanted him gone, rather than the siblings. Ultimately Danny does not leave, although he gets a ride to the bus stop from John. Danny's confrontation with his father inadvertently causes Robert to have mini-strokes, eventually resulting in his death.

The Rayburns' past is full of dark secrets that are revealed throughout the season. Danny's dysfunctional relationship with his family primarily stems from the untimely death of his younger sister, Sarah, when he was a teenager. Danny took Sarah out on a boat. Her seahorse necklace fell into the water, and when she attempted to retrieve it, she drowned. Robert lost control and beat Danny over her death. Sally covered up this abuse by having John, Kevin, and Meg lie to the police about their brother's injuries.

Robert's death opens the door for Danny to have a permanent job at the inn. Danny appears to be changing his ways with hard work and dedication, which puts him in Sally's good graces. However, Danny's problem past is shown via his connection with childhood friend and troublemaker Eric O'Bannon. The two begin siphoning gasoline from local docks for drug and human trafficker Wayne Lowry. As they gain Lowry's trust, they are given larger jobs to complete. Danny eventually uses his job at the Rayburn House as a front to smuggle cocaine for Lowry.

John and the sheriff's department collaborate with the DEA in an investigation into the deaths of unknown women and drug trafficking in Monroe County by Lowry and his men. The investigation leads John to Danny and his recent activities. While secretly investigating Danny, John finds Danny's smuggled cocaine in a shed on the Rayburn House property.

During a meeting between John, Kevin, and Meg, the three siblings conclude that the only way to fix the situation and not put the family's business at risk with the Feds is to move the drugs to Danny's home in Miami without telling Danny. The loss of the drugs puts Danny in a bad situation with Lowry, who believes that Danny has stolen the cocaine from him. Lowry sends a hitman to assassinate Danny, but Danny kills the hitman.

Under pressure, Danny begins to act erratically. Danny tries to threaten John by taking his daughter Janie out on a boat and giving her a seahorse necklace, similar to the one that belonged to their deceased sister, Sarah. John and his wife Diana take this as a threat against the family, so John sends his wife and children away for a few days. The seahorse necklace causes John to reach his breaking point. During a confrontation, John drowns Danny in the ocean.

Distraught from murdering his brother, John has a heart attack and turns to Meg for help. Meg and Kevin decide to cover up the murder by moving Danny's body. John eventually sets a boat on fire to create an explosion that would frame Danny's death. Unsatisfied with what she is told, Sally turns to family friend and retired detective Lenny Potts to privately investigate the matter.

In the aftermath of Danny's death, Meg moves to New York City to take a job with a large firm; Kevin reunites with his estranged wife, Belle, who is now pregnant with their child; and John reunites with his family. The season ends with the arrival of Danny's son, Nolan, at John's home to find out what happened to his father.

Season 2 (2016):

Danny's death continues to haunt the Rayburn family. Wayne Lowry confronts John, claiming to have a tape recorded by Danny that could be used as blackmail against John.

John's deputy Marco Diaz continues to question people in relation to Danny's death, including Eric O'Bannon. Meg returns from New York, John runs for Sheriff, and Kevin continues to struggle with his business. Nolan and his mother Eve arrive at the Rayburn house and meet Sally to discuss Danny.

Through Nolan and Eve, the Rayburns learn more about Danny's past, including his asking Robert to borrow some money for his restaurant. Robert made him choose between that or his continuing to send money to Eve for Nolan's support. Ozzy, an old friend of Danny's from Miami, has gotten involved with Eve and works with her to appeal Meg's cancellation after her father's death of the payments to Eve for child support of Nolan.

John tries to get the tape from Lowry by telling him to turn himself in so that the DEA can arrest his contacts and his family will be protected. Lowry considers the offer, but backs down due to Kevin giving back some of the drugs Danny had. Lowry is killed by the father of one of the victims killed when he blew up a boat containing people they were trafficking.

While John runs for Sheriff, Marco gets closer to finding Danny's killer. Marco, who used to have a relationship with Meg, grows to resent the Rayburn family for lying and telling contradictory stories. Eric O'Bannon tells Marco he has proof that John killed Danny. Kevin goes to see Marco to tell him that John killed Danny; Marco responds that John, Meg, and Kevin are all going to prison. Kevin tries to confess to Marco, and then murders him.

Season 3 (2017):

Following Marco's murder, Kevin seeks Roy Gilbert's help to cover up the murder. Gilbert engineers a plan that frames O'Bannon for the murder, but Kevin nearly loses his life in the process. The impending trial creates further rifts within the Rayburn clan; Meg vanishes, Kevin becomes further ensnared in Gilbert's shady machinations, and John is increasingly consumed by guilt for Danny's death.

Meg goes and hides in Los Angeles. Ozzy kills himself after getting captured by Gilbert's men prior to Gilbert's apparent death from a heart attack. Sally reveals the truth about the Rayburns' past of hiding secrets. O'Bannon loses the trial and ends up in jail. Kevin gets arrested for smuggling drugs for Gilbert. Sally confesses to hating John and Kevin, and that Danny was her favorite. John is conflicted about whether to confess to Nolan about Danny; the series ends as their conversation is about to begin.

Cast:

Main cast:
  • Kyle Chandler as John Rayburn, the second son; a detective and local deputy with the Monroe County sheriff's office.
  • Ben Mendelsohn as Danny Rayburn, the oldest son and black sheep of the family (main, seasons 1–2; guest, season 3)
  • Linda Cardellini as Meg Rayburn, the daughter and youngest sibling; an attorney and the family peacekeeper.
  • Norbert Leo Butz as Kevin Rayburn, the hot-headed youngest son; he refurbishes boats at Indian Key Channel Marina.
  • Jacinda Barrett as Diana Rayburn, John's wife; she runs a plant nursery.
  • Jamie McShane as Eric O'Bannon, Danny's friend and Chelsea's brother; a parolee.
  • Enrique Murciano as Marco Diaz, Meg's former long-term romantic partner; a detective with the Monroe County sheriff's office and John's partner.
  • Sam Shepard as Robert Rayburn, the patriarch (main, season 1; guest, season 2)
  • Sissy Spacek as Sally Rayburn, the matriarch.
  • Katie Finneran as Belle Rayburn, Kevin's estranged wife (recurring, season 1; main, seasons 2–3)
  • John Leguizamo as Ozzy Delvecchio, a man from Danny's past (seasons 2–3).
  • Andrea Riseborough as Evangeline (Eve) Radosevich, the mother of Nolan Rayburn who has unfinished business with the Rayburn family (season 2)
  • Chloë Sevigny as Chelsea O'Bannon, Eric's younger sister; a nurse (recurring, seasons 1–2; main, season 3)

Recurring cast:
  • Steven Pasquale as Alec Moros, Meg's legal client and lover.
  • Mia Kirshner as Sarah Rayburn, Sally and Robert's deceased elder daughter. Angela Winiewicz portrays young Sarah in flashbacks.
  • Brandon Larracuente as Ben Rayburn, John and Diana's son
  • Taylor Rouviere as Janie Rayburn, John and Diana's daughter
  • Glenn Morshower as Wayne Lowry, a local bait shop owner who deals and distributes illegal drugs
  • Gino Vento as Rafi Quintana, smuggler and Wayne Lowry's employee
  • Eliezer Castro as Carlos Mejia, a former employee of the Rayburns' who hires Meg as a lawyer
  • Bill Kelly as Clay Grunwald, a DEA agent
  • Jeremy Palko as Nicholas Widmark, Kevin Rayburn's neighbor
  • Randy Gonzalez as Manny, employee at the Rayburn House
  • Frank Hoyt Taylor as Lenny Potts, an old Navy friend of Robert's and a retired Monroe County detective
  • Owen Teague as Nolan Rayburn, Danny's son, whom only Robert knew about; Teague also portrays the young Danny Rayburn in flashbacks
  • Beau Bridges as Roy Gilbert, a political supporter and ally of John Rayburn for county sheriff, and a drug trafficker
  • David Zayas as Sheriff Aguirre, the incumbent sheriff running against John; also his and Marco's superior

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WebcastPictured below: Webcast vs. Web Conference: What's the Difference?
​A webcast is a media presentation distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology to distribute a single content source to many simultaneous listeners/viewers. A webcast may either be distributed live or on demand. Essentially, webcasting is "broadcasting" over the Internet.

The largest "webcasters" include existing radio and TV stations, who "simulcast" their output through online TV or online radio streaming, as well as a multitude of Internet only "stations".

Webcasting usually consists of providing non-interactive linear streams or events. Rights and licensing bodies offer specific "webcasting licenses" to those wishing to carry out Internet broadcasting using copyrighted material.

​Overview:

Webcasting is used extensively in the commercial sector for investor relations presentations (such as annual general meetings), in e-learning (to transmit seminars), and for related communications activities. However, webcasting does not bear much, if any, relationship to web conferencing, which is designed for many-to-many interaction.

The ability to webcast using cheap/accessible technology has allowed independent media to flourish. There are many notable independent shows that broadcast regularly online. Often produced by average citizens in their homes they cover many interests and topics. Webcasts relating to computers, technology, and news are particularly popular and many new shows are added regularly.

Webcasting differs from podcasting in that webcasting refers to live streaming while podcasting simply refers to media files placed on the Internet.

History:

The earliest graphically-oriented web broadcasts were not streaming video, but were in fact still frames which were photographed with a web camera every few minutes while they were being broadcast live over the Internet.

One of the earliest instances of sequential live image broadcasting was in 1991 when a camera was set up next to the Trojan Room in the computer laboratory of the University of Cambridge. It provided a live picture every few minutes of the office coffee pot to all desktop computers on that office's network. A couple of years later its broadcasts went to the Internet, became known as the Trojan Room Coffee Pot webcam, and gained international notoriety as a feature of the fledgling World Wide Web.

Later in 1996 an American college student and conceptual artist, Jenny Ringley, set up a web camera similar to the Trojan Room Coffee Pot's webcam in her dorm room. That webcam photographed her every few minutes while it broadcast those images live over the Internet upon a site called JenniCam. Ringley wanted to portray all aspects of her lifestyle and the camera captured her doing almost everything – brushing her teeth, doing her laundry, and even having sex with her boyfriend.

Her website generated millions of hits upon the Internet, became a pay site in 1998, and spawned hundreds of female imitators who would then use streaming video to create a new billion dollar industry called camming, and brand themselves as camgirls or webcam models.

One of the earliest webcast equivalent of an online concert and one of the earliest examples of webcasting itself was by Apple Computer's Webcasting Group in partnership with the entrepreneurs Michael Dorf and Andrew Rasiej. Together with David B. Pakman from Apple, they launched the Macintosh New York Music Festival from July 17–22, 1995. This event audio webcast concerts from more than 15 clubs in New York City. Apple later webcast a concert by Metallica on June 10, 1996 live from Slim's in San Francisco.

In 1995, Benford E. Standley produced one of the first audio/video webcasts in history.
On October 31, 1996, UK rock band Caduseus broadcast their one-hour concert from 11 pm to 12 midnight (UT) at Celtica in Machynlleth, Wales, UK – the first live streamed audio and simultaneous live streamed video multicast – around the globe to more than twenty direct "mirrors" in more than twenty countries.

In September 1997, Nebraska Public Television started webcasting Big Red Wrap Up from Lincoln, Nebraska which combined highlights from every Cornhusker football game, coverage of the coaches' weekly press conferences, analysis with Nebraska sportswriters, appearances by special guests and questions and answers with viewers.

On August 13, 1998, it is generally believed the first webcast wedding took place, between Alan K'necht and Carrie Silverman in Toronto Canada.

On October 22, 1998, the first Billy Graham Crusade was broadcast live to a worldwide audience from the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Florida courtesy of Dale Ficken and the WebcastCenter in Pennsylvania. The live signal was broadcast via satellite to PA, then encoded and streamed via the BGEA website.

The first teleconferenced/webcast wedding to date is believed to have occurred on December 31, 1998. Dale Ficken and Lorrie Scarangella wed on this date as they stood in a church in Pennsylvania, and were married by Jerry Falwell while he sat in his office in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Virtually all major broadcasters now have a webcast of their output, from the BBC to CNN to Al Jazeera to UNTV in television to Radio China, Vatican Radio, United Nations Radio and the World Service in radio.

On November 4, 1994, Stef van der Ziel distributed the first live video images over the web from the Simplon venue in Groningen. On November 7, 1994, WXYC, the college radio station of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill became the first radio station in the world to broadcast its signal over the internet.

Translated versions including Subtitling are now possible using SMIL Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language.

Wedcast:

A webcast of a wedding may be called a wedcast; it allows family and friends of the couple to watch the wedding in real time on the Internet. It is sometimes used for weddings in exotic locations, where it would be expensive or difficult for people to travel to see the wedding in person.

Webcasting a funeral is also a service provided by some funeral homes. Although it has been around since at least 2005, cheaper broadband access, the financial strain of travel, and deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan have all led to increased use of the technology.

See also:







Halt and Catch Fire (AMC: 2014-2017, NETFLIX 2018-Present) Pictured below: Halt and Catch Fire: "I/O" Review
Halt and Catch Fire is an American period drama television series created by Christopher Cantwell and Christopher C. Rogers. It aired on the cable network AMC in the United States from June 1, 2014, to October 14, 2017, spanning four seasons and 40 episodes. 

Taking place over a period of more than ten years, the series depicts a fictionalized insider's view of the personal computer revolution of the 1980s and the growth of the World Wide Web in the early 1990s. The show's title refers to computer machine code instruction Halt and Catch Fire (HCF), the execution of which would cause the computer's central processing unit to stop working (catch fire being a humorous exaggeration).

In season one, the company Cardiff Electric makes its first foray into personal computing, with entrepreneur Joe MacMillan (Lee Pace) running a project to build an IBM PC clone with the help of computer engineer Gordon Clark (Scoot McNairy) and prodigy programmer Cameron Howe (Mackenzie Davis).

Seasons two and three shift focus to a startup company, the online community Mutiny, that is headed by Cameron and Gordon's wife Donna (Kerry Bishé), while Joe ventures out on his own. The fourth and final season focuses on competing web search engines involving all the principal characters.

Halt and Catch Fire marked Cantwell's and Rogers's first jobs in television. They wrote the pilot hoping to use it to secure jobs as writers in the industry but instead landed a series of their own from AMC. The story was inspired by Cantwell's childhood in the Silicon Prairie of Dallas–Fort Worth, where his father worked as a software salesman, and the creators' subsequent research into Texas's role in personal computing innovations of the 1980s.

Filmed in the Atlanta, Georgia, area and produced by the network, the series is set in the Silicon Prairie for its first two seasons and Silicon Valley for its latter two.
​
Halt and Catch Fire debuted to generally favorable reviews, though many reviewers initially found it derivative of other series such as Mad Men.

In each subsequent season, the series grew in acclaim, and by the time it concluded, critics considered it among the best shows of the 2010s. Despite its critical reception, the series experienced low viewership ratings throughout its run, with only the first episode surpassing one million viewers for its initial broadcast.

Series synopsis
Main article: List of Halt and Catch Fire episodes

​First season:

In 1983, former IBM sales executive Joe MacMillan joins Cardiff Electric, a Dallas-based mainframe software company. There, he enlists the help of computer engineer Gordon Clark to reverse engineer an IBM PC and reconstruct the assembly language code of its BIOS.

Company owner Nathan Cardiff and vice president John Bosworth confront the two when the company is sued by IBM for copyright infringement. After Joe reveals that he told IBM about the project, Cardiff Electric is forced to legitimize it and enter the personal computing business.

Needing a software engineer to write the BIOS for their IBM clone, Joe recruits prodigy college student Cameron Howe to join Cardiff. Joe heads the PC project, with Gordon leading the hardware team and Cameron writing the BIOS in a "clean room".

Joe's goal for the PC is to be twice the speed at half the cost of IBM's PC, but much of the company does not buy into his vision or trust him. He further alienates himself from Cardiff and Bosworth by upsetting a potential investor and causing IBM to aggressively undercut Cardiff Electric, resulting in layoffs.

Despite her suspicions of Joe, Cameron begins an on-again, off-again relationship with him. Gordon's wife, Donna, an engineer at Texas Instruments (TI), is wary of her husband's involvement in the project after the failure of their PC, the Symphonic, years prior.

Eventually she contributes to Cardiff Electric's project, first by leading a data recovery effort (for a data loss event faked by Joe), then by giving Gordon her idea for a double-sided printed circuit board. Gordon brokers a deal for discounted liquid crystal displays through his father-in-law's connection with a Japanese company.

After finishing the BIOS, Cameron is promoted to head of the software engineering team and designs a user-friendly operating system (OS) intended to draw in the user. Joe's ex-lover Simon, an industrial designer, designs the case for the PC, which is named the "Cardiff Giant".

Initially hesitant to the project, Bosworth comes around, only to be denied further funding by Cardiff. With Cameron's help, Bosworth embezzles money to sustain the project but is arrested as the company office is raided by the FBI. Having smuggled out the Giant prototype, Gordon convinces the others to proceed with their plan to present at the COMDEX trade show.

At COMDEX, the team are shocked to discover the "Slingshot", a copycat of the Giant, being presented by the Clarks' neighbor (a former Cardiff Electric employee) and Donna's former manager from TI. In order to undercut the Slingshot and make the Giant commercially viable, Gordon removes Cameron's OS and the supporting hardware.

When Joe supports the decision, a heartbroken Cameron leaves him. Joe and Gordon present the downgraded Giant at COMDEX and secure their first order, but it's a hollow victory for the team. After witnessing a demonstration of the Apple Macintosh at the conference, Joe becomes disillusioned with the Giant. Cameron quits Cardiff Electric and poaches most of the software engineering team to start an online gaming startup company called Mutiny.

After Donna leaves TI, she accepts an offer from Cameron to join Mutiny. The Cardiff Electric team celebrates the completion of the Giant, but Joe sets fire to the truck containing the first shipment and disappears, leaving Gordon to run the company.

Second season:

Cardiff Electric is sold to a conglomerate in 1985, earning Gordon a six-figure settlement but Joe nothing. Eager to start anew, Joe gets engaged to his girlfriend Sara and goes to work at Westgroup Energy, an oil magnate where her father, Jacob Wheeler, is CEO. Starting in data entry, Joe spots an opportunity to use their mainframe computers for time-sharing and takes over the department. Meanwhile, Donna and Cameron are chaotically running Mutiny in a rented house with their developers.

Cameron hires a paroled Bosworth to be a manager, as well as one of Mutiny's subscribers, Tom, to be a game designer; she and Tom begin dating.

Gordon writes a computer program, "Sonaris", intended to map Mutiny's network, but it inadvertently acts as malware. To make up for his mistake, Gordon reaches an arrangement with Joe for Mutiny to be Westgroup's first time-sharing client at a discount in exchange for Gordon configuring the mainframes.

Mutiny subsequently thrives, due in part to their new "Community" chat rooms conceived by Donna. Preoccupied with work, Donna keeps an abortion secret from Gordon, and he hides his toxic encephalopathy diagnosis from her.

At Jacob's request, Joe raises Mutiny's rates, much to Cameron's chagrin, but Donna and Joe negotiate a compromise contingent on Mutiny meeting certain benchmarks. One of them is porting their software to the AT&T UNIX PC, which they unsuccessfully fake during a demo for Joe.

Impressed by their ingenuity, Joe convinces Jacob to make an acquisition offer to Mutiny, but after realizing Jacob would corrupt the startup's vision, Joe convinces Cameron to reject it.

He decides to quit Westgroup and after marrying Sara, plans to move them to California. Gordon admits his medical diagnosis to Donna and begins stress therapy after his condition worsens following the failure of his homebuilt computer business.

Tom and Cameron write a first-person shooter game, but on the night of its planned launch, Westgroup replaces Mutiny's service on their network with a copycat, "WestNet". Joe denies involvement, but the Mutiny staff disbelieve him. Cameron and Donna sell their game to sustain the company, causing Tom to break up with Cameron and quit Mutiny.

Cameron emotionally manipulates Joe in order to run the Sonaris malware on a Westgroup computer, crippling their network during Joe's presentation of WestNet at a shareholders meeting.

Sara annuls her marriage to Joe, while Jacob is scapegoated for the WestNet fiasco and fired.

After Gordon admits to an affair, Donna gives him an ultimatum: he must purchase and renovate a mainframe in California for Mutiny, move their family there with the company, and take a job with them; he agrees.

Having transitioned from games to an online community, Mutiny departs for California. Gordon writes Joe an antivirus program in hopes of helping Westgroup, but Joe uses it instead to pitch a venture capitalist. He invites Gordon to join the endeavor but is refused. Gordon is furious to learn later that Joe has received $10 million in funding for a new company in the San Francisco Bay Area, MacMillan Utility.

Third season:

In 1986, Mutiny launches its mainframe and surpasses 100,000 users. Gordon is involved in a copyright infringement lawsuit against Joe. After noticing that Mutiny's chat feature is facilitating user-to-user transactions, Donna and Cameron are inspired to build an online trading feature and begin pitching venture capitalists. One of them, Diane Gould, helps Mutiny acquire a competitor, Swap Meet.

Underappreciated Mutiny programmer Ryan Ray quits, and after being inspired by Joe's presentation of MacMillan Utility's no-cost antivirus software, Citadel, he convinces Joe to hire him.

The Swap Meet–Mutiny merger causes friction, as Cameron is resistant to making her code compatible with Swap Meet's and wants to fire their founders. Ryan is disconcerted to learn MacMillan Utility plans to charge users for Citadel. To keep it free, Joe enlists Ryan in a special project to find another revenue stream.

After Ryan maps the ARPANET, they spot potential in the NSFNET, a backbone network not yet approved for commercial use. The two build their own regional network at MacMillan Utility, but after spending millions of the company's money and making a handshake deal with the NSFNET in defiance of the company's board of directors, Joe is stripped of his executive powers. As a result, he declares in a deposition that he stole Citadel from Gordon.

Cameron's and Donna's relationship deteriorates; Cameron unilaterally fires the Swap Meet founders, and the women clash on how to implement credit card transactions and whether to undertake an initial public offering (IPO) after they receive a $20 million acquisition offer. Cameron, who wants to delay for 1–2 years to continue developing Mutiny, is outvoted by Donna, Diane, Bosworth, and Gordon on the IPO; feeling betrayed, she leaves the company, and decides to move to Japan with her newly-wed husband Tom.

The Mutiny IPO dramatically underperforms expectations. Gordon and Joe preserve the NSFNET deal with Gordon heading MacMillan Utility. After Ryan illegally releases Citadel's source code and becomes a fugitive from the FBI, Joe steps away from the project to keep it alive.

Months later, Ryan shows up at Joe's apartment and is dismayed to learn his legal options. The next morning, Joe discovers that Ryan has killed himself; his suicide note warns how people will use the connectedness of computer networks to hurt each other.

By 1990, Mutiny has folded. The Clarks are amicably divorced. Donna is a partner at Diane's VC firm, while Gordon is running the regional network. Joe is working in his apartment.

Bosworth is retired and living with Diane. Cameron is a successful video game developer for Atari. While promoting her game Space Bike IV at COMDEX, she reconnects with Joe and sleeps with him. They, along with Donna, Gordon, and Tom, meet at the former Mutiny office to discuss Donna's memo about the fledgling World Wide Web.

Joe proposes building a web browser, and everyone but Tom is receptive; he and Joe have a physical altercation, halting the meetings. Cameron tells Donna she cannot work with her; Donna begrudgingly leaves as Gordon, Joe, and Cameron prepare to start their new venture.

Fourth season:

Over three years, Gordon and Joe run the internet service provider (ISP) CalNect, and Joe logs website URLs. Working from Japan, Cameron fails to complete a web browser for them before they are beaten to market by Mosaic. When CalNect's backbone provider MCI declines to offer them more bandwidth, Gordon and Joe realize MCI is forming its own ISP and sell CalNect.

Cameron's cerebral role-playing game, Pilgrim, performs poorly in focus groups and is put on hold by Atari after a negative review. While visiting California, she tells Joe that Tom is divorcing her; she and Joe rekindle a romance. At the VC firm AGGEK, Donna sets up an incubator for a medical database indexing company called Rover to pivot them into web indexing. In debt, Bosworth unretires to oversee the project.

After Gordon's teenage daughter Haley builds a website from Joe's directory of URLs, they form a new startup called Comet to develop it into a human-curated web directory. Donna is surprised to learn her daughter is working on a competing search engine.

As Comet grows, Rover's algorithm proves substandard; Bosworth approaches Cameron to ask for help improving the algorithm, which she obliges. Rover's sudden success results in Series A funding but Donna is suspicious. During her ensuing argument with Bosworth about the subject, he suffers a heart attack. At the hospital, Donna realizes Cameron's involvement and tells her to stay out of her life. Cameron admits to Joe her role in helping his competition.

Facing an intellectual property ownership conflict, Donna fires Rover's head programmer but refuses to purchase the rights to Cameron's algorithm, leading to Diane removing her from the project; Cameron signs away the algorithm without compensation. A financier, Alexa, provides Cameron with funding to work independently.

When Haley's school grades begin slipping, Gordon tells her she must take time off from Comet, leading to her storming out. Bosworth admits to Diane that he is in debt; the two marry.

After Donna opines on the importance of retaining visitors to their sites longer, Gordon is inspired to relaunch Comet as a web portal, which Joe excitedly agrees to. Before they can begin, Gordon dies from a stroke. His friends and family gather to grieve and clean out his house; Cameron and Donna reconcile.

Months later, while preparing for the relaunch of Comet, Joe and Cameron receive a beta copy of the yet-to-be released browser Netscape Navigator. They discover a link to Yahoo! on its toolbar as the default search provider and realize that Comet is doomed.

After one final night together, they break up. Joe sells Comet, and AGGEK sells Rover's algorithm. Diane retires and is succeeded at the firm by Donna, who renames it "Symphonic Ventures" and fosters a relaxed, inclusive work culture. Cameron ends her professional relationship with Alexa.

​Preparing to leave California, Cameron stops at Donna's house to say goodbye but stays to try to recover Haley's school project from her crashed hard drive. Donna and Cameron discuss the prospect of working together again.

Later that evening, Donna hosts a gala for women in tech before visiting the former Mutiny office with Cameron. The following morning, as they leave a diner, Donna has an epiphany and tells Cameron, "I have an idea". Joe returns home to Armonk, New York, to become a humanities teacher.

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The Lincoln Lawyer (Netflix: 2022-Present) Pictured below: Clockwise from upper right: Stars Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Mickey Haller with Neve Campbell as Maggie McPherson; Angus Sampson as Cisco, Mickey's friend and go-to investigator and Lorna's fiancé; Becki Newton as Lorna Crane, Mickey's second ex-wife and his legal aide; and Mickey Haller and his "Lincoln office".
​The Lincoln Lawyer is an American legal drama television series created for television by David E. Kelley and developed by Ted Humphrey, based on the books of Michael Connelly. 

It stars Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Mickey Haller, a defense attorney in Los Angeles who often works out of a chauffeur-driven Lincoln Navigator. Neve Campbell, Becki Newton, Jazz Raycole, Angus Sampson, and Christopher Gorham also star.

The first season is based on Connelly's 2008 novel The Brass Verdict, a sequel to his novel The Lincoln Lawyer. It premiered on Netflix on May 13, 2022. It received generally positive reviews from critics.

In June 2022, the series was renewed for a second season. It is based upon Connelly's 2011 novel, The Fifth Witness (the fourth book in The Lincoln Lawyer series), and will stream in two parts. The first part was released on July 6, 2023, and the second will be released on August 3.

Premise:

Lawyer Mickey Haller works in the back of his Lincoln Navigator as he takes on cases in Los Angeles.

Cast:

Main:
  • Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Mickey Haller, a criminal-defense lawyer and recovering addict.
    • Adan James Carillo as young Mickey Haller
  • Neve Campbell as Maggie McPherson, Mickey's first ex-wife and a criminal prosecutor.
  • Becki Newton as Lorna Crane, Mickey's second ex-wife and his legal aide.
  • Jazz Raycole as Izzy Letts, a former addict and client of Mickey, now working as his personal driver
  • Angus Sampson as Cisco, Mickey's friend and go-to investigator and Lorna's fiancé.
  • Christopher Gorham as Trevor Elliott (season 1), a billionaire video game developer suspected of a double murder.

Recurring:
  • Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine as Detective Raymond Griggs, a detective investigating Jerry Vincent's murder case
  • LisaGay Hamilton as Judge Mary Holder, the Chief Judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court
  • Jamie McShane as Detective Lee Lankford, a detective investigating Angelo Soto with Maggie
  • Reggie Lee as Angelo Soto, a business owner suspected of utilizing slave labor; currently being prosecuted by Maggie
  • Carlos Bernard as Robert Cardone, a District Attorney running for re-election
  • Kim Hawthorne as Janelle Simmons, also running for District Attorney
  • Michael Graziadei as Jeff Golantz, Deputy District Attorney and prosecutor in the Trevor Elliot trial
  • Krista Warner as Hayley Haller, Mickey and Maggie's daughter
  • Lamont Thompson as Judge James P. Stanton, the judge presiding over the Trevor Elliott trial
  • Saul Huezo as Jésus Menendez, an old client of Mickey's, whom Mickey encouraged to plead guilty despite believing he was innocent
  • Katrina Rosita as Tanya Cruz, Soto's girlfriend
  • Heather Mazur as Carol Dubois, an insurance agent who had an affair with Jan Rilz
  • Mikal Vega as Eli Wyms, a former marine and client of Jerry Vincent
  • Mike McColl as Glenn McSweeney, Juror Number Seven
  • Chris Browning as Teddy Vogel, leader of the Road Saints Motorcycle Club
  • Lana Parrilla as Lisa Trammell (season 2), a chef accused of murdering a real estate developer
  • Yaya DaCosta as Andrea "Andy" Freemann (season 2), a formidable criminal prosecutor in Trammell's case
  • Matt Angel as Henry Dahl (season 2), a true crime podcaster covering Trammell's case
  • Angélica María as Elena (season 2), Mickey's mother
  • Andrea Savo as Elena (season 1), Mickey's mother, an actress
  • Douglas Bennett as Pete "Kaz" Kazinski (season 2), a member of the Road Saints Motorcycle Club
  • Marlene Forte as Judge Teresa Medina, the judge presiding over the cases of Eli Wyms and Lisa Trammell

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