The changes in network news have little to do with consumer
tendencies or entrenched content provider culture. News departments
have operated at a financial loss for many many years. The big
networks supported news as a service to the public, not as a
moneymaker. Furthermore, the internet has really changed the way news
is consumed. I really think it falls outside of the entertainment
discussion. It is a very different product.
Gian Anthony Constantine
Senior Network Design Engineer
Earthlink, Inc.
On Jan 15, 2007, at 5:53 PM, Richard Naylor wrote:
At 09:50 a.m. 15/01/2007 -0500, Gian Constantine wrote:
The problem with this all (or mostly) VoD model is the entrenched
culture. In countries outside of the U.S. with smaller channel
lineups, an all VoD model might be easier to migrate to over time.
In the U.S., where we have 200+ channel lineups, consumers have
become accustomed to the massive variety and instant gratification
of a linear lineup. If you leave it to the customer to choose
their programs, and then wait for them to arrive and be viewed,
the instant gratification aspect is lost. This is important to
consumers here.
While I do not think an all or mostly VoD model will work for
consumers in U.S. in the near term (next 5 years), it may work in
the long term (7-10 years). There are so many obstacles in the way
from a business side of things, though.
I don't see many obstacles for content and neither do other
broadcasters. The broadcast world is changing. Late last year ABC
or NBC (sorry brain fade) announced the lay off of 700 News staff,
saying news is no longer king. Instead they are moving to a
strategy similar to that of the BBC. ie lots of on-demand content
on the Internet.
Rich