This year one question seemed to echo a little louder than the rest. It was aimed at Netflix content boss Ted Sarandos and, essentially, it went like this: "Just what does it take for a show on Netflix to get axed?"

The question is bound up in a whole bunch of issues, notably the lack of traditional "TV ratings" for streaming programs, which makes it difficult to measure which are hits and which are not.

There is also the PR spin that needs to sustain the idea that everything on Netflix is shiny and marvellous. That mindset means nothing is allowed to fail as it surges out of the gate and takes the first turn.

Complicating that is the fact Netflix has a tendency to renew everything, the television version of a "no TV show left behind" policy. House of Cards, tick. Fuller House, tick. The list goes on.

But today all of that came to a juddering halt: the streaming platform cancelled Bloodline, its complex American family drama. It's doubly bad news for Australians, as the show stars one of our most beloved actors, Ben Mendelsohn.

Ben Mendelsohn has been nominated for a best supporting actor Emmy for his role in Bloodline, which Netflix has now axed. Photo: Saeed Adyani

There was, it should be noted, a teeny little bit of writing on the wall: Netflix had already trimmed its third season back to 10 one-hour episodes.

But it does leave you wondering why a show like Bloodline gets cancelled while shockers like Fuller House and The Ranch do not.

Which takes us back to that original question: what would it take, honestly, for Netflix to axe a show?

Critical to this particular equation is news that the US state of Florida had cut its entertainment tax incentives program, which essentially takes a bite out of Netflix's pocket.

Sissy Spacek is one of the high-calibre cast members of Bloodline. Photo: Matt Winkelmeyer

That move apparently prompted Netflix's decision to notify Sony, who make the show, the deal was up.

But when the question was put to Sarandos by US media earlier this year, he defended the company's record, saying they had in fact axed some shows, including Lilyhammer, Hemlock Grove and Derek. But neither Lilyhammer nor Derek was, technically, a "Netflix original", and the platform still has some 30 "Netflix originals" on the slate, all of them seemingly in no danger of cancellation.

With a track record like that, you have to either assume Netflix has somehow stumbled on a flop-free recipe for making television programs, or you have to accept that among those 30 shows are failures which the streaming platform is not owning up to.

The reason why is simpler still.

Netflix is still in its infancy, despite the enormous amount of money it seems to suck in globally, and spit out in content production. And much of that success is built at the expense of traditional "quality TV" players like HBO.

The ending of tax credits in Florida, where it is set, could be behind the cancellation of the show. Photo: Netflix

So it's important, right now, for Netflix not to ruin the honeymoon by admitting some of the shows on its platform are not quite up to snuff.

Sarandos said the company's algorithm for success involved cost, relative to what else the money might have been spent on, how many people completed seasons of the show and extraneous elements, such as social media buzz, and whether a show resides in the "zeitgeist".

"If it achieves all those things, then we're happy and thrilled and we make more as long as there is a creative direction that will take you to a second season," he said.

"We look for shows that can sustain multiple seasons right off the bat, so I think a lot of times people are looking for a show that's going to pop right away," he added. "And we're looking for that, too."