Meanings
- neologismbroadcastingA golden age of television generally held as beginning in the late 1990s and peaking in the 2010s, characterized by the proliferation of a large, diverse array of scripted shows coinciding with the rise of premium cable and streaming services.
Peak TV has meant a surfeit of shows for a growing but ever more fractured universe of consumers.
2020 June, Radhika Jones, “Editor's Letter”, in Vanity Fair, page 162 more examples
This isn’t the most important reason, of course, but with “Peak TV” in full swing these days, time is precious, and the less time a new piece of entertainment takes, the better.
2018 June 12, Andrew Husband, “Binge this now: Why you should watch Amazon's 'Goliath'”, in Metro, New York, NY, page 21And as a vital part of the long-tail economy that is Peak TV, shows from abroad have won over Americans who’ve dropped cable and now stuff their streaming queues with romantic Korean dramas or chilly Nordic thrillers or kinetic Japanese anime.
2021, Judy Berman, "A whole world worth watching", Time Magazine, 15 February 2021 - 22 February 2021, page 110Synonyms: Prestige TV
Synonyms & antonyms
proper nounA golden age of television generally held as beginning in the late 1990s and peaking in the 2010s, characterized by the proliferation of a large, diverse array of scripted shows coinciding with the rise of premium cable and streaming services.
Origin
Coined by American television executive John Landgraf at a Television Critics Association event in 2015.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Peak TV. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Peak%20TV
“Peak TV.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Peak%20TV. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Peak TV,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Peak%20TV.
Source: Peak TV on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.