A recent article on BusinessWeek.com makes an interesting point: cable TV networks are gradually becoming more and more like video-based web sites. The fear is, of course, that if cable networks do not evolve, they will continue to lose ground to the popularity of Internet-based media sites such as YouTube and Hulu.
Steve Burke, the CEO of Comcast, the largest cable distribution network in United States, compares the exodus of viewers leaving cable-TV programming for Web based video to a “wildfire.” It is certainly true that the last 12 months has seen Internet entertainment sites reach a kind of critical mass, and the sliding advertising revenues of cable networks is proving a difficult trend to reverse.
And even though many online video sites claim only a small percentage of the viewership which cable TV boasts, taken altogether, online entertainment poses a real threat to cable. The ability to watch our favorite programs “on demand” online is a huge part of the success of online entertainment, and it’s something that is nearly impossible to achieve in a traditional cable broadcasting matrix.
So how does cable TV turn back the tide? Big industry players like Comcast and Time Warner are being proactive by adding much more content online. The cable distributors are also doing something you might not expect: redesigning programs to actually emulate web-based video sites. Cable is also taking advantage of the raging popularity of social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to keep in touch with viewers, and create a more interactive experience around many of their biggest shows.
Comcast has even gone so far as to purchase their own social networking site (Plaxo), which will be redesigned to create an interactive community of cable viewers. Comcast executives claim that other online “experiments” are also being taken very seriously.
Additionally, a new technology known as tru2way is helping cable networks make shows that are more interactive and “web-like” than ever for. The service allows the viewer to search for programs in the same way Web surfers can search Google or Yahoo for something they are interested in.
The technology could represent a serious turning point in how we define cable-television. The same service also allows users to surf the web on the TV, play video games, or even chat and text with friends. Most importantly, all of these activities can be monetized by the use of interactive commercials similar to those now being run on web sites such as Hulu.
Will online video turn out to be the beast that ate cable TV? Many media experts believe the question isn’t “if,” but rather, “when.” In the meantime, cable is doing everything they can to bridge the gap, and carve out their own specific “web-like” Niche on TV.
