The Television Academy has decided to make changes to the Emmy Awards, adding a new short form categories and expanding the definition of the genre, as a nod to the growth of streaming digital content.
Chairman and CEO Bruce Rosenblum said that the academy's board of governors believes that expanding to short form categories for the Emmy Awards will ensure that creativity worthy of recognition will be awarded, no matter the platform or format.
The changes include the addition of three short form categories, namely Outstanding Short Form Series - Comedy or Drama, which replaces Short Format Live Entertainment; Outstanding Short Form Series - Variety; and Outstanding Short Form Series - Reality, which replaces Short Format Nonfiction.
There will also be new categories for performers in short form series, with the two new awards being Outstanding Actor in a Short Form Series - Comedy or Drama and Outstanding Actress in a Short Form Series - Comedy or Drama.
For a series to be eligible for award nomination, it should have at least six episodes with an average running time of 15 minutes or less. The content can be broadcast over-the-air, through cable, satellite or the Internet.
The Emmy Awards being opened up to streaming content awards will be based on peer voting for such content. The Streamys and the Webbys, which recognize such content, allows voting across the general public.
With the changes in place, networks and platforms that will be eligible to win an Emmy include YouTube Red, Fullscreen, Crackle, Adult Swim and many more.
"Our governors recognize the volume of really exceptional work of our members and the people on other platforms," said Rosenblum to The Hollywood Reporter. "Look at the quality of talent working in this space. It's the responsibility of our organization to recognize that."
The awarding of the new short form categories will occur in the Creative Arts Emmy Awards ceremony, which will occur for two nights on the weekend before the telecast of the Emmy Awards.
According to the Television Academy, the addition of these new short form categories mirrors the addition of reality programming in the Emmy Awards in 2001. Reality and nonfiction shows made up only eight categories that year, but that number has since grown to 22 categories.
