For decades, long-running soap operas like “All My Children” and “One Life to Live” have thrilled fans. Unfortunately, the cost of producing these shows has gotten too high so many TV networks are switching to less expensive reality-based shows that are less expensive to produce. (Notice that quality of TV programming never enters the picture?)
The problem is that TV networks are simply looking to cut costs. However, these two soap operas are now going to continue producing new shows by moving to the Internet.
Apparently, advertising will support the shows. Now people will be able to watch their favorite episodes at their convenience, and presumably be able to view any missed episodes at the same time. By viewing TV shows over the Internet, viewres can still see the soap operas they love and get the added convenience of being in control of when they watch the show and review previous episodes. This works at to greater convenience for the viewer while eliminating the linear middleman of the traditional TV networks.
Now what does this have to do with publishing? TV networks are middlemen much like publishers. As publishers pursue sure-fire best-sellers like anything written by a celebrity, TV networks are pursing sure-fire hits like any show based on reality that’s less expensive to produce. That means the Internet is the new place to watch TV shows and access information, not TV or bookstores.
The Internet provides maximum convenience for the consumer, which TV networks and book publishers cannot offer. If soap operas and other scripted TV shows can thrive on the Internet, that’s the new future. TV networks are as obsolete as bookstores. They were both the only source of information at one time, but now they’ve been losing power steadily. They’re both obsolete.
