pandora’s (tv) box
Sites that suggest music will soon suggest TV shows
Earlier this week, Matt Jacobs broke down how much his TV viewing would cost him if today’s $1.99 iTunes TV downloads become the norm.
That got me thinking about this new world many say we’re about to be in, one without TV networks that provide a linear stream of programming.
Many people I know in the TV industry think that there will always be a need for linear programming — that enough people just want to turn their TV on and “watch what’s on.”
Some wonder “how will people know what to watch” without a linear channel to turn to?
To me, it seems like the writing is on the wall — linear programming will not survive.
However, in a world without traditional TV networks, how do shows get produced? And, how do people find shows they are interested in?
There are several existing media models that point to an effective way to distribute and promote television shows without linear programming:
- Paid downloads: iTunes, Google Video et al. make sense to most — but whether downloads are enough to support shows remains to be seen
- Free downloads: Ad-supported (legal), BitTorrent (typically illegal)
- Streaming, suggestive viewing
Idea number three is the one that grabs me.
Imagine an extension of Pandora.com or Yahoo Music that plays TV shows.
Let’s take Pandora as an example. You log on, and type the name of a song or music group that you enjoy. The site then begins playing similar music, often from obscure artists. You then rate the songs and hear more songs that are most likely new, yet comparable to songs you like.
PandoraTV could work in the same way. You log onto a former network’s website, or onto Yahoo’s video site and type the name of a TV show, or even favorite episode of that TV show. Then, this virtual network plays back similar video that you rate, eventually narrowing down the video selections that you see based on your ratings.
When you find a new series that you enjoy, that network might let you download advertising supported episodes to watch later. You could even subscribe to a feed of the show, so your digital video recorder could always have an episode waiting to show you when you turn on your TV.
This model also suggests a way to offer show pilots — or beta tests in Web speak — to an audience.
PandoraTV just streams a scene or two from a pilot, and if enough people give it the “thumbs up,” the network knows it stands a chance of producing a hit.
Here are some uncessarily dorky looks into my musical taste:
- Dan’s Pandora favorites (trust me, it’s embarassing)
- Yahoo music
I can’t wait to be able to create similar TV channels for my friends to watch.
Categorized as television