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Netflix bids adieu to some A&E reality shows

What? No more "Dog the Bounty Hunter" or "Ice Road Truckers" on Netflix? Netflix seems much more interested nowadays in dramatic serials than unscripted fare.

Greg Sandoval Former Staff writer
Greg Sandoval covers media and digital entertainment for CNET News. Based in New York, Sandoval is a former reporter for The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. E-mail Greg, or follow him on Twitter at @sandoCNET.
Greg Sandoval

Shows from the A&E cable channel, such as "Ice Road Truckers," "Hoarders" and "Storage Wars" will no longer appear on Netflix's streaming video service.

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings CBS 60 Minutes

A licensing agreement for about 40 A&E shows expired last week and the shows were removed from the site, Variety reported. At the same time that Netflix is doubling down on scripted television serials, the Web's top video-subscription service seems to be pulling back on unscripted reality shows.

Earlier this month Netflix announced it had penned a licensing deal with ABC for three TV shows: "Revenge," "Scandal," and "Once Upon a Time." Netflix managers have said that serial TV shows are the on-demand service's sweet spot because users can watch multiple episodes in a single sitting and choose to pick up the story again at their convenience.

Get used to seeing content coming and going at Netflix. As the costs of licensing streaming rights continues to rise, Netflix will have to become choosier about where it puts its money. Netflix's skill at picking which shows to invest in will be key to its survival -- just like it is for broadcast and cable channels.

Some of the other A&E shows that will no longer appear on Netflix are "Pawn Stars," "American Pickers," as well as "Gene Simmons: Family Jewels," "Intervention" and "Dog the Bounty Hunter."