A reader writes:
"Will the internet replace broadcast TV as the primary launching pad for new show concepts?"Yes.
I've been seriously thinking of getting rid of my cable and just keeping my broadband, for a while now. I live alone, so watching TV on my computer isn't a hardship -- actually, being a web designer and photographer, my computer monitors are a lot *nicer* than my TV. Most of the shows that I watch can either be watched in streaming video off of the network's website, or Hulu, or downloaded via Netflix or iTunes. I realized recently that even if I bought every episode of the two or three series that I might want to watch via iTunes, that would still be *substantially* cheaper than what I pay for my cable service in any given year.
The problem with cable is that you can't just buy the products that you want from them. You have to buy these ginormous packages, which, I suppose, might be nice for families with varied interests (sports, kids' programming, news, movies, etc.), but for one person like me? I don't *NEED* 250 channels or whatever it is now.
Up on the Cape we have never had a TV. This year, we downloaded the three shows we are addicted to: The Daily Show, The Colbert Report and The Soup, and watched them on a laptop. No ads. Just a day's delay. What's not to love?