What is it that draws us to television? A medium that's been around more than fifty years and that is still expanding in its uses. We started back when it was black and white, where not everyone owned a television in every room, and the programming was quite limited. Over the course of time, we got color, TVs in our bedrooms, clearer picture and sound. Now we have high definition coursing its way much like when color was first created in the old picture tubes.
It's no surprise technology continues to grow, with expanding knowledge and greater inventions the picture tube will become obsolete. Our TVs will become flat screened with higher clarity and crisper images. What isn't to love about that? We embrace it and with that a new technology the digital video recorder.
When TIVO first appeared, no one realized the potential on how it would change our viewing habits. We skip commercials, something advertisers love I'm sure. We program our televisions and watch our shows when we want, truly On Demand, a concept our cable providers crafted for their own content on their own boxes that they allow us to watch as well.
With the introduction of TIVO and the DVR, the advertisers look at the ratings to include overnights. Many of us don't know, the homes that fast-forward aren't included in those ratings. Not every TIVO or DVR is included, those that are, know. They're part of the Nielsen study group, their television habits recorded on a daily basis. They're the minority that represent us, the viewers. Somehow I don't think that's fair but that's just me.
With TIVO, there are people that can hack the system. There's computers with TV cards and people hooking up to the internet, uploading and downloading episodes of their favorite shows. There's no commercials, no advertising, and it's in no way legal. That isn't to say you can't watch your favorite shows legally online, there's iTunes where you pay the price for your favorite shows and then some of the networks are finally allowing you to watch your shows with limited commercial interruptions.
The advertisers are directly paying the networks (like they do when you watch television) or you're paying them when you download from a site like iTunes.
Where am I going with this? Oh yes, the writers strike.
So it shouldn't be huge news to you now, that the Writers Guild Association is on strike. Talks were made but no agreement came. The factor dividing them-2.5% of New Media Sales. How much does that really amount to? The networks aren't saying but they aren't budging either. The effect on the industry however is being felt throughout it.
It's not the main actors that are being affected. They still make their money during this. It's not even the writers that make $200k/year and have enough saved to support themselves and their families for a few months. It's the ones doing craft services, editing the footage, doing all the behind the scenes things that you never see and never know exist.
During the strike, one father had to bring his two children to work, unable to pay for childcare without an income and his wife had died a few years earlier, providing them with no money coming into the household. Other people on set are asking the actors if they need any help around the house, cleaning, cooking, anything to help earn a livable wage during this time of need. It seems Hollywood doesn't care about the little people, but why should they when they're making millions of dollars in the Studios? It's never been about the little people. The Production Assistants make just over minimum wage, working seventy hours a week. How's that for fair?
The strike has already impacted several shows. 24 which was planning to air in January has been delayed. The production of new episodes is on hold for shows from all major networks including CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX, and CW. Even talk shows have been affected from the minute the strike began.
This is probably not news to most of you keeping up with the current strike information on the web and on television. What is new? It's the fact the digital age is here and with newer content, the networks are afraid of what it means. Already viewers turn off their TVs and surf the web. Some of us do both at the same time but how long until we choose one over the other? That's not to mean television will become obsolete. I don't believe it will. What I do believe is it will change. Hard drives will be mounted to our televisions, like our current TIVOs and DVR set boxes, we'll have thousands of hours recorded and be able to manipulate it on our computers and share it with our friends. We already do this now, just imagine if your shows were when you wanted them and not when the networks chose to air them.
