Netflix nabs Shonda Rhimes for new shows

play by streaming services to go head-to-head with Hollywood and the traditional powers of the entertainment industry.

The signing of the award-winning writer and producer was a massive win for Netflix, analysts say, and highlights the mounting competition among studios for top-tier talent. Streaming players such as Netflix and Amazon are investing billions of dollars to challenge the cable television model, vying to offer consumers entire libraries of original content, which are tailored to specific audiences and available on a range of devices, at the push of a button.

Last week Netflix said it was buying the comic book company Millarworld, the publisher of

and in a deal that gives Netflix the tools to make its own interconnected universe of superheroes films and television shows – and a chance to emulate Disney and Marvel’s wildly successful run.

Talented producers are now commanding much more power in the rush by entertainment companies to acquire the most compelling shows, said Ross Gerber, chief executive of Gerber Kawasaki, an investment management firm.

As Netflix aims to develop more of its own programming, the company is flexing its spending muscle to court exceptional producers.

In the case of Rhimes for example, she said Netflix understood what she was looking for: “The opportunity to build a vibrant new storytelling home for writers with the unique creative MORE TO COME: Shonda Rhimes’s hi