TV marathon or TV binge (from the English. Binge-watching ) - a way to watch television programs, often TV shows, for a long period of time. According to a survey conducted by Netflix in 2014, 74% of respondents define a TV marathon as "watching 2-6 episodes of the same series at a time." The TV marathon phenomenon has become a real cultural phenomenon with the growing popularity of media services such as Netflix (Netflix), Hulu (Hulu), and Amazon Video (Amazon Video), which provide services for watching movies and TV shows.
History
The term TV marathon (or TV booze) became widely used after the advent of streaming services and the ability to watch movies and TV shows online. In 2013, Netflix began releasing all the episodes of its TV shows on the same day. 61% of users of this service stated that they began to watch several series at a time more often. Since then, this word does not go out of use and is becoming increasingly popular. Thus, in November 2015, the British dictionary "Collins" declared the expression "TV marathon" to be the word of the year [1] , and over the past 12 months, the frequency of use of this word on English-language resources has increased several times.
The term in film culture
Popular actor Kevin Spacey said that producers should "give the audience what they want to see. And if they want to organize TV marathons, then they should have such an opportunity" [2] . The actor argued that good and interesting stories will keep the audience’s attention for hours, and this can lead to a reduction in piracy, which is a huge problem for studios and channels. A high-quality TV marathon (such as Breaking Through or Breaking Bad) can be compared to reading several chapters of a good book.
However, research conducted at the University of Texas at Austin found that viewing a large number of episodes at a time leads to depression, loneliness and even obesity. “Despite the fact that some people argue that TV marathons are not a bad habit, such research results suggest that there is a problem,” [3] , scientists say.
Notes
- ↑ "Binge-watch is Collins' dictionary Word of the Year." BBC News. 5 November 2015. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
- ↑ BBC News. "Kevin Spacey: TV audiences want to binge." BBC News. BBC. 21 April 2015.
- ↑ Sung, Yoon Hi; Kang, Eun. "A Bad Habit for Your Health? An Exploration Factor for Binge-Watching Behavior." American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Retrieved 23 August 2015.