The well-publicized attempt by Comcast to acquire
several cable networks (such as CNBC, Bravo, and the USA Network), a
leading Hollywood movie studio (Universal Pictures), and a major broadcast television
network (NBC) will impact how we watch television. However, it may be that forces are in
play that will drive these changes and Comcast is just positioning itself to
between ride the new wave as TV and the Web converge.
Mark Guarino at the Christian
Science Monitor recently discussed the move in “Three ways the
Comcast-NBC merger could change television.” He outlines these impacts: more content, fewer subscriptions since
the new company would have both Hulu and Fancast to access online content.
There will also be more ne-stop
viewing. Like AT&T, Verizon, and other carriers, Comcast offers
bundled deals involving broadband internet, cable, mobile, and landline phones.
Finally there will be more online
viewing outside the television. Comcast will be able to integrate its
cable, Internet, and mobile phone services with its new library of content,
allowing subscribers to access a vast number of TV shows and movies in new
ways.
All of these impacts reflects the Web – TV
convergence and will only provide further support for it. I found the quote
from Paul Levinson, a media analyst at Fordham University in New York
especially telling, “In the next five years, more people will be seeing ‘The Tonight
Show’ online than on their television sets.” The convergence will be so
extensive that in 10 or 15 years, we won’t be talking television screen versus
online because they’ll all be the same screens.” This is what we have been saying for some time and it sets
the stage for an online TV schedule search engine such as TVissimo.
We look forward to seeing how this unfolds. Rick
Munarriz, senior analyst for The Motley Fool noted that some 95 percent of
Comcast’s current revenue comes from cable subscriptions – a business model
that is “not sustainable,” he says. Targeted ad revenue can come through a
search engine such as TVissimo as it knows what people are looking for and
obtains a profile to match against these moves.
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