‘House of Cards’ makes history

The Netflix political drama “House of Cards” made television history on July 18, when it became the first online-only series ever to be nominated for a major Emmy award. “House of Cards,” starring Oscar winner Kevin Spacey as a shrewd US congressman, broke fresh Emmy ground, scoring 9 nominations including best drama and, for Spacey, best actor in a drama. Inspired by a BBC series from the early 1990s, “House of Cards” was made exclusively for Netflix, the online movie streaming website, which put all 13 episodes online in February in one fell swoop. This year’s Emmys come at a time of radical change in the TV industry, with more and more viewers “cutting the cable” and watching their favorite shows via the Internet on cellphones, tablets and so-called “smart TVs.” Original programming made exclusively for YouTube and other video streaming websites – sometimes with high production values, but at much lower cost – is also reshaping the business and finding an ever-growing audience.

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