Netflix's First Big Buy Should Be Discovery

The streaming wars are leaving smaller programmers and studios faced with the inevitability of selling to one of the handful of companies set to dominate the world of online video subscriptions: Amazon.com Inc., Apple Inc., AT&T Inc., Netflix Inc. and Walt Disney Co. Deal speculation has mostly centered on movie houses such as Lionsgate and MGM, but the hottest takeover target in streaming is better known for ripping out red carpets than walking them. Discovery Inc. — with its HGTV home-renovation shows, TLC reality dramas, Food Network cooking competitions and modern twists on nature programming — may be just what Netflix needs to stay on top.

Discovery is a treasure trove of wildly addictive, low-budget reality programs that have spawned passionate superfans. “90 Day Fiance,” which airs on the TLC network, is such a ratings magnet that CEO David Zaslav once mused that it’s the company’s own Sunday Night Football. Meanwhile, streaming giants are plowing billions of dollars per year into what they call “premium content,” the implied bar being scripted series of HBO quality and movies good enough for theaters. But these strategies seem to ignore that there are a great many people simply yearning for more trash TV on streaming apps who have been left disappointed by a lack of options.