Mindjack has an article up about how BSG and bittorrent have killed the broadcasters. The statement may be a little premature, but it is worth thinking about:
October 18th, 2004 is the day TV died. That evening, British satellite broadcaster SkyOne — part of NEWS Corp's BSkyB satellite broadcasting service — ran the premiere episode of the re-visioned 70s camp classic Battlestar Galactica. (That episode, "33," is one of the best hours of drama ever written for television.) The production costs for Battlestar Galactica were underwritten by two broadcast partners: SkyOne in the UK, and the SciFi Channel in the USA. SciFi Channel programmers had decided to wait until January 2005 (a slow month for American television) to begin airing the series, so three months would elapse between the airing of "33" in the UK, and its airing in the US. Or so it was thought.
The average viewer of the SciFi network is young and decidedly geeky. They are masters of media; they can find ways to get things they shouldn't have. Thus, a few hours after airing on SkyOne, "33" was available for Internet download. No news there.
Is the torrent underground good or bad for TV? I don't see the technology itself as having any moral center, but what it does show is an inevitable change. Why are networks so slow to monetize what the consumers are obviously showing as a demand for TV shows outside of traditional (DVD/VHS) mediums? Such pressure cannot be ignored... look at the music industry.
I understand there is a lot of money in distribution channels and that is worth protecting, but do know that any money spent by the media industry is ONLY for protecting and not preserving. Any distribution outside of "instant" will be going away soon.
If a TV show was really good and I was excited to watch it, I would gladly pay $2.00 - $5.00 to download each episode on demand. I could then burn it to DVD, watch it on my TV, watch it on my PVR.
What would you pay each week for an episode of a great show like Battlestar Galactica?
It'd depend whether or not it'd also be broadcast and when the broadcast would be shown in relation to the download time.
Now having been hooked on the show, I'd pay $5 an ep to see the next season, but not if say the season started airing next week. But then I'm a poor grad student.
Posted by: Justine | May 14, 2005 at 02:26 PM
If selling the eps is something they might do long term, it could be something where new shows let you download and watch the pilot for free to get you hooked... and then to see the next ep you have to pay... who knows how it will shake out.
Posted by: Trapper Markelz | May 14, 2005 at 03:26 PM