I've been blabbing about this for a while (not here) but I think TV as we know it is dead. The concept of waiting around for shows or having to record them for later (no matter how easy DVR or Tivo make it) seems completely antiquated to me. Maybe I'm just a geek, but I don't really watch TV anymore - I've replaced the idiot box with another idiot box known as my computer. If I'm in my car I'm usually listening to audio podcasts, and when I'm home I can usually be found hunched over my desk getting lost on the Internet. All of this stuff is on demand when I want it - even if something I love is on live, I usually will just try to catch it later via download (with the exception of sports). Even Sportscenter, which I used to be able to watch a few times a day (of the same highlights over and over) seems like a waste of time to me now when I can get the same news in my car or in a few minutes via Internet video.
What actually made me think about this now was a recent browsing of the iTunes video podcasts selection. It's amazing how much video content is being produced that is actually very good (and free for that matter). Even more amazing is the variety of content - much, much more than what's on television. I think TV will eventually have to pattern itself after the iTunes sort of model where content is released and viewers subscribe to a channel of content or a specific piece of content and pay per subscription. The concept of paying for 150 channels, 5 of which you watch with some consistency, will eventually be recognized for what it is - a huge ripoff.
2 Comments:
Very interesting post.
I dunno though. What about the concept of flipping channels when you don't really know what you're in mood for?
The question is if we had the opportunity to get our channels/shows pay per subscription (and save money that way), would we even want to flip through the channels anymore? We can find better ways to waste our time, right?
I think flipping channels is not an activity that was designed, but rather a product of an old, crappy cable delivery system.
Post a Comment