Chris Albrecht at NewTeeVee has a great post summarizing where network TV shows are available this fall . . . besides the TV. Here’s their very handy chart:
| Network | Home Page | AOL | iTunes | Amazon Unbox | Xbox Live |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Yes | Yes | Yes | Just The Nine | No |
| CBS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| CW | Just Beauty and the Geek | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| FOX | Yes | Yes | Yes (free for now) | Yes | Yes |
| NBC | Yes | Not Yet | For now | Yes | Yes |
I just downloaded the new Kelsey Grammer/Patty Heaton sitcom — for free on iTunes — because I missed it the other night and didn’t think to TiVo it. If this were old-time TV, I’d have been out of luck until rerun season, of course — if the show get to reruns. Now I can watch it when and where I want. How long will it be before the venues above add up to more than broadcast TV for some series? Not as long as you think.
I wouldn’t be surprised at all if online venues started beating out actual TV broadcasts for some series, especially the cult classic type of shows or ones that aren’t available on basic cable. Personally, I already watch way more online (but I’ll admit that lots of times I only check the best clips on blogs and such) than I do on regular TV, but that could be a function of the fact that I’m a writer with a strange schedule who travels a lot, and therefore misses the normal broadcast times.
But really, isn’t the popularity of technology like TIVO and DVR and On Demand leading to this anyways? People want to watch shows when it fits their schedule, not the other way around. The actual scheduled times of shows seem to be becoming irrelevant.
There will always be a place for time shifted viewing of shows and alternate means of distribution. I continue to believe, however, that this will be supplemental to the regular TV viewing experience rather than the primary source.
One, in most cases, downloads are not free, thus limiting the universe of viewers willing to pay ala carte rates for something that is traditionally free, or that they’re pay a subscription fee to access already. Same can be said for Tivo/DVR – I know I’m not interested in shelling out another $10 a month to Cablevision under any circumstances.
Two, no alternate distribution system is equal to or superior to watching a program on a real TV. Please don’t mention AppleTV in this context. That ship has sailed/failed; only a matter of time before Apple discontinues support.
Three, pundits like Jeff have been sounding the death knell of the traditional TV network schedule since the first VCR rolled off the line many years ago. Through VCR, DVD, Tivo, DVR, iTunes, Amazon, appointment TV continues to be the primary access point for televised entertainment. Just because most people can now catch up with a series whenever they like doesn’t mean that’s the preference. If that were the case, you’d see a much smaller jump in viewership for season or series finales than what actually occurs.
Channels like MTV have reacted by creating events, like the VMA’s, that will only be available in their original form once. The result this year was a 25% jump in viewership from year to year.
I think that services such as these will always supplement the already growing DVR population. It is nice to think that most people have price points that are below free (a la Torrents) or already paid for via their DVRs, but that may not be the case.
I know for people who want the highest quality of the shows they watch on a DVD before the actual box set comes out this is usually the most reliable way to do it.
At the end of the day the networks may need to innovate further than pushing their products on new distribution lines.
I would like to review those tv shows I grew up on. Say fed. I wonder why many of them are not returning in reruns.
Cost of permission rights? Dialog content would be, um, revealing? Other Owner Rights reasons?
I should be able to see mini anti piracy versions to review in my adulthood. To reflect if my mind was molded via tv, which I’m pretty sure it was. Were my parents awake at the switch?
Does anyone know of a library were all tv programming is stored? Library of Congress?
Ever wonder what will be classic tv of the 21st Century, like I Love Lucy was of the early days?
Does it matter? I kinda think so.
Then again, there is no going back, is there.
this wish link I found
great tv of yesterday
thanks Schoolhouse Rocks
‘The Preamble’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_TXJRZ4CFc
Where is PBS on this list? It’s usually the only network I find interesting when I turn on the TV and want to be a non-interactive vegetable.
In my consulting work for broadcasters, I’ve been talking about the death of the schedule since the mid-90’s. In 1997, they thought I was nucking futs, so after a while I stopped talking about it as much. Now they say, “yeah, we knew that.”
I agree with Paw that the technology isn’t quite there to make the schedule go away for Pa and Ma Kettle just yet.
There is only one reason that appointment viewing is still dominant and that is because PVRs do not have the penetration of cable and over-air; take away live shows (sports/news) and appointing viewing has declined significantly for the past five years. There is no one anywhere who sees appointment viewing as a growth industry; the opposite is in fact true.