NBC, which has increasingly offered premiere episodes online before a show's on-air debut, will go one step farther. It's making the launch of new drama "The Black Donnellys" available to Netflix
subscribers
before being streamed online. The show officially airs this spring. The deal marks the second time NBC has linked with Netflix to help promote new dramas, having mailed premiere
episodes to some 5 million subscribers for the fall launch of two shows: "Kidnapped" was quickly cancelled, while "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" is a modest success. The latest promotion integrates
the "Black Donnellys" into the Netflix "system," since users have to first select it to receive it through the mail, just as they do movies and other DVDs. Netflix subscribers will have exclusive
access to the "Donnellys" debut episode until Jan. 15, when it will be available on NBC.com. The NBC DVD will continue to be available to Netflix users through March.
--David Goetzl
