Netflix Makes Emmy History

HBO has been dethroned.

After a 17-year reign as content king, the premium producer has surrendered its leadership in total Emmy nods to Netflix, Inc. NFLX.

What Happened

Netflix scored 112 Emmy nominations on Thursday to beat out HBO (108), NBC (78) and FX (50). The next-best streaming services ranked Nos. 7 and 8, with Hulu securing 27 and Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN's Prime Video taking 22.

Despite its overall dominance, Netflix has yet to claim the most nominations for any single show. HBO’s “Game of Thrones” took this year’s title with 22.

Why It’s Important

Still, Netflix’s 112 nominations indicate incredible growth in content quality over the last few years. The company boasted just 34 in 2015, followed by 54 and 91 in the following two seasons.

HBO’s performance has proven less consistent, although always superior. The 126 earned in 2015 dropped to 94 in 2016, then bobbled to 111 last year.

AT&T, Inc. T is unlikely to let Netflix's success go unanswered. HBO’s new owner recently committed to effecting subscription-driving changes.

For the time being, Netflix can bask in the recognition, particularly as content distributors increasingly focus on production and more competitors break into the ring.