The Diffusion of Innovations - Game of Thrones

The Diffusion of Innovations theory is mainly applied to technology or ideas in most uses, but if we look at a TV show we can see it follows similar steps as other ideas and tech. In this case, we'll look at HBO's hit series, Game of Thrones. The show is based off of a novel series, A Song of Ice and Fire, by George R. R. Martin and by the series' end, it had become the second most awarded show in the Emmy's Awards history with 59 wins over 8 years. But it wasn't always the TV juggernaut that it became. 

HBO's Game of Thrones adaptation was pioneered by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and was announced in 2007. But took until November of 2008 for HBO to order a pilot, and even then the series didn't officially premier until 2011. The book series had been running since 1996, with a loyal fanbase and multiple media outlets placing the show as one of their most anticipated series of the year. The first episode premiered with 2.2 million viewers, which was a small amount but strong enough for HBO to order a second season off of the premier's viewership alone. For reference, the most watched piece of television in 2011 was the Super Bowl at 111 million viewers. The first season had a total average of 9.3 million viewers and grew with each season, at most, by 5 million new viewers until Season 7 in 2017. Season 7 averaged 32.8 million viewers in total jumping from 25.7 million for season 6, and Season 8 averaged 46 million viewers in total. With the final episode becoming HBO's most watched single telecast with 13.6 million viewers on the HBO channel alone, raising it to 19.3 million across all HBO platforms. This pushed Game of Thrones to the top of HBO's most watched list of original programming where it still remains today. The show has gone past the screen bounds of people's television in the later seasons as the filming sites in Northern Ireland and Croatia have become tourist destinations for fans, people would name their children after characters from the show. 

Even though the show is the most watched series in HBO's history, it hasn't reached everyone yet, and most likely never will. The show might've broken records in its last season, but there are still people that refused to watch it then and now. To not watch the show became as much of an identity as watching it in anticipation for the 8th season. Arguments have been made about the extreme violence of the series, the traumatic events of a character's death that happen onscreen, the explicit language, and the gratuitous amount of nudity and sex onscreen. So Game of Thrones might be one of the biggest television series and events of recent years, not everyone will choose to take part in the action.