Internet versus Television - Research Paper Example

?Will the Internet Kill Television? A. Introduction There has been a lot of propaganda going on the future of television ever since the arrival of broadband internet coinciding with the new millennium. Television could boast of presenting 500-channels through cable or satellite but the web has been turning out to be a potpourri of programming. It was common knowledge that web would replace television with all its stream and amazing high-definition. Scope of seeing advertisement was getting dismal. But all this has proved to be far away from truth. People are still dedicated to viewing their mainstream programs. Although the whole of North America is under the impact of web through broadband availability, getting entertained through TV online but the TV still rules the roost (Alang par. 1). Latest developments indicate that it is not the web that is capturing the database of TV viewers but the reverse is becoming true. Contrary to the popular assumption, people are not getting distanced from TV and turning towards the internet, but the web is approaching towards TV. And the amusing part is that cause of web content enlarging in size and potential is that it is getting distanced from computers. The big question remains to be researched still is that is it the web, entering into the space of TV or it is the other way (Alang par. 1). B. Media has impacted teens TV watching activity greatly, as is evident from the survey organized on the national scale, revealing that all U.S. teens aged 14-18 have available in their homes TV, VCR, radio, and CD player. Most of the teens have a computer with internet connection also. They view a mix of all popular media, including not only TV but videos, movies, music, computers and video games besides reading books, magazines, and newspapers. Television leads the other electronic gadgets, as it mostly remains switched on. About half the teens aged 8-18 have reported that the TV is on “most of the time.” Two-thirds have revealed that TV is not off during eating hours as well. Percentages of teens TV viewing differ even in the various teen age groups, such as the 14- to 18-year-olds view TV for nearly 2? hours, nevertheless, they view less TV than kids aged 8-13. The older teens have other recreational activities, such as listening to music on an average, nearly 2? hours a day. Comparing teens TV watching time with their computer usage, it has been revealed that TV takes precedence over computer, as teens spend only 30 minutes using a computer (Clinton 11). The survey on teens TV watching behavior has offered critical insights for parents also to bring the limit of TV watching of their children under control. The “less contented” youth watches more various media, while “most contented/well-adjusted” spends lesser hours on various media, including TV. It has causal inference for parents to observe closely the impact of the media on youth. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry has offered guidelines to parents for not only teens TV watching but family programs watched by all members of the family need to be controlled for not spending long hours so that teens could have a positive experience with TV. Role of President Clinton and Vice President Gore is appreciable for enforcing legislation for installing the V-Chip in all new television sets sold starting January 1, 2000. There is no doubt that teens watch TV relatively more than any other media, and other demographic groups are catching with them by spending long hours in TV viewing, especially parents, but it needs to be controlled (Clinton 11). C. Freeman proclaims television to be the winner for seeing “The Fighter.” He cannot forget the days when the whole family used to see “event TV”. There have been many instances of bringing television programming to the internet. Internet has enabled possibilities of winning awards at such events. The live TV has enabled events such as Grammys and the Super Bowl reaching record ratings, to the credit of internet or to attribute more rightly to social media. There was a rush of viewers, waiting to comment through the cyberspace about the stupidity of Christina Aguilera, messing up with the national anthem LOL OMG WTF, making the role of technology significant (Freeman par. 4- 6). There is no need to wait 12 hours to discuss about a program in the office as the next day approaches, as comments can be made in real time on the “Twitter TV”. Actually, the TV people are turning in thankful mode, as if an elder person has been secured by not entering the poor house through the interference of the suddenly turning benevolent youngster who had cornered away the elder man’s house and employment. See the comments of CBS Corporation’s Leslie Moonves to the New York Times, “The internet is our friend, not our enemy.” So, it has emerged that not only the fear that internet will kill TV was baseless but it has advanced the reach of live TV, which includes award shows, sports events, reality TV and the random stories of Mad Men. One can see the Oscars on the TV and at the same time Google as well (Freeman par. 7-9). D. Both the traditional media and the internet are replacing commercials to attract audiences by signing up new customers, spending on an average $50 a person. Both media are investing their funds wisely, which is a very arduous task otherwise. In the words of Brian Fortune, the 49-year-old chief marketing officer of the Silicon Valley ad agency P3M, “A lot of dollars are chasing a very small market. Traditional mass-media thinking doesn't work in small markets. You have to target customers very accurately to get your message through (Garber par. 2)”. Another notable effort to replace 30-second commercial on television and internet is to advertise through billboards, as they are also inexpensive and relatively perfect for mass-market services. Darby Williams, 45-year-old chief executive officer of Cook Express that sells ready-to-cook gourmet meals over the Web, is of the opinion that the most successful marketing investment has been the $20 discounts Cook Express offers to the customers who invite friends to the Cook Express site. Williams’ confidence is based on real benefits from nearly 8% referral customers turning loyal buyers. They are the evangelists who bring in more customers to the Cook Express. No doubt, the discounts are costly, but they are bringing prospective visitors. Such promotions are becoming popular, as in the case of Cook Express, its monthly turnover is increasing by double digits after the beginning of the discount promotions. Online businesses and traditional businesses need to test the possible advertisement alternatives from the very start by not putting all the eggs in a single basket, as there could be other ad concepts that need to be exploited. As banner advertisement cannot cater to all demographics, the Community Web sites like planetout.com are turning out to be godsend for technology intensive marketers (Garber par. 4-6). E. Predicting along with experts, for the next 10 years, the TV viewing experience is going to introduce sweeping changes at neck-breaking speed. Possibilities are that TV will become unidentifiable. What was only imaginable would turn into reality, as there would be no channels, no remote control, and even not a TV set. News updating could be possible from the bathroom mirror even while brushing teeth. One could update oneself just from the family-room window. Interesting game actions could be seen from various angles, such as the end zone, on the 50-yard line, or even in-between the huddle. After seeing the pizza advertisement on the TV, one could order a pizza by clicking on the logo, visible from the TV screen. It won’t take much time for these scenarios becoming real. This is the TV landscape, going to rule our interaction with the TV, with one-another, our rapport with the TV content, the TV screen, and will totally change the TV viewing experience (Puopolo et al. 1). It will be the same experience, viewing TV, only by entertaining the viewers through its varied concurrent content. Certain demographics such as senior citizens might like the simple arrangement by their own choice. F. It can be stated for sure that internet is not going to kill television but the television will be entering into innovative phases of its discovery. Teenagers would be the front-runners in accepting the technological revolution in communication by accepting the changed experience. Not only teenagers but other demographics would also not only be appreciate but welcome the changed experience. As television would be entering into a revolutionary phase, its relationship with the internet would also transform but other forms of advertising such as banners and discount offerings fear no risk. Time will open up new advertising streams, not imagined before perhaps. There is no doubt about the technological growth, changing the TV viewing experience 10 years from now. Time is catching speedily and perhaps it may not take full 10 years to experience the stunning technological advances. In fact, internet may lag behind TV in entertaining the viewers. Works Cited Alang, Navneet. “Is the Web Finally Ready to Kill Television?” July 12. Gadgets. Web. 16 May 2013. . Clinton. “Teens and Their Parents in the 21st Century: An Examination of Trends in Teen Behavior and the Role of Parental Involvement.” 1999. Web. 17 May 2013. . Freeman, Hadley. “G2: The Real Winner at the Oscars this Year. It will be Live Television, even though the Internet was supposed to Kill TV.” Guardian. 23 Feb. 2011: 5. Business Insights: Essentials. Web. 13 May 2013. Gale Group. Garber, Joseph R. “Will the Web kill TV ads? Nope.” Forbes 164.7 (1999). Web. 13 May 2013. Database: Business Source Complete. Puopolo, Scott, Carlos Cordero, William Gerhardt, Kate Griffin, Leszec Izdebski, Leszek and David Parsons. CISCO IBSG. “The Future of Television: Sweeping Change at Breakneck Speed. 10 Reasons You Won’t Recognize Your Television in the Not-Too-Distant Future.” 2011. CISCO IBSG. Web. 17 May 2013. . Read More