The Future Of TV… Though Not Yet

Watching shows on the net today reminds me of watching UHF pre-cable. It was there, but a hassle. It’s more likely I’d watch on my PC where there’s a fuller multimedia presentation through your browser.

cbsn

When Amazon briefly marked its brand new Fire Stick down to $20, I bought one. It now joins my Roku and Chromecast as ancillary TV receivers. It’s TV over the Internet instead of over the air. Some ‘channels’ are linear others totally on demand.

Definitions are getting blurry. Are they channels? Is ComediansInCarsGettingCoffee a channel or show or both or neither? That’s still being decided.

cbsn-logoI downloaded an app to watch CBSN, the new all news offering from CBS.

It’s available only via the net.

It looked pro. They’ve gone for warmth with a tie-less anchor and brick walled studio. The production seemed a little thin. 24/7 is a lot of time with few additional bodies. TV can be done inexpensively. The product is almost as good.

It is well written and serious–CBS’ish.

Screenshot 2014-12-02 21.26.07They play an animated “We’ll be right back” bumper. Really? In 2014? These are early problems which will be solved.

I probably won’t watch CBSN much on the big TV in the loft. Too many steps. Using the big TV for shows on the net today reminds me of watching UHF pre-cable. It was there, but a hassle. It’s more likely I’d watch on my PC where there’s a fuller multimedia presentation through the browser.

What happens to the incumbents–newspapers and local TV news outfits as more and more services set out to the Internet? They adapt or perish.

Some adapt, still perish.

Have you read a newspaper with a hyphenated name? The Journal-Courier, Courier-Journal, Star-Ledger, Times-Picayune, Times-Herald-Record, Post-Gazette, Post-Dispatch? Consolidations and shakeouts happen.

When I was a kid, New York City had seven citywide English language newspapers with additional dailies in Brooklyn, Staten Island and Queens. Not anymore.

This market, Orange County, is greatly under-served. Maybe some clever video news provider will shake-in? Alas, the bigger trend is in the other direction.

Addendum: I am considering sending the Fire Stick back. It is unstable or unusable on the two sets I’d like to use it on. I believe the problem has to do with DHCP, a method of digital rights management and these individual sets. Will Amazon fix the problem? It’s stopping me from using their product.

3 thoughts on “The Future Of TV… Though Not Yet”

  1. Well written blog. It’s finely tuned to be heard correctly. Satelite dishes replace antennas. Massive internet cable channels replace UHF. Dressed up or dressed down – same person – human being. REMOTE makes the difference. Placement of channel like hide and go seek. Years ago channel 6 was Danbury, CT local public access snuggled between NY channel 5 FOX and channel 7 ABC – NOW – channel 6 has been fielded to channel 23 over the rainbow of old standard channels. QVC has been DISPLACED too to end of 100 channel cycle YET watchers will watch whatever. Personally, with onset of premature social media, time will tell how people communicate with one another including hand held miniture television band widths, but all channels will interbreed and hybrids will be produced in time. Oh what a beautiful morning will be chanted once again in time kind time.

  2. It’s a conundrum. When I was in the business, customer were fretting about how to deliver over the top, and ‘moneterize’ it. (Is that even a word?) Still, many are delivering content that defines the ‘eh’ factor, thinking they’re moving in the right direction.

    I agree about Sony taking their lumps. The open the door, and now complain how they’ve been hurt. I don’t think so.

    And, I think you meant DCMP…

    73,
    Steve
    W1KF

  3. As a cordcutter, I no longer have access to cable news. Every single thing we watch is through our Rokus or via antenna. I was quite excited to hear of the launch of a streaming-only cable style news network and I’ve watched several hours of their programming so far. It’s definitely unpolished and needs some improvements, both in the reporting and in their streaming technology, but I’m thrilled to see things moving this way and it’s a great first step.

Leave a Reply to Albert George Bruhn Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *