V I D E O • A G E Se p t e m b e r/ Oc t o b e r 2 0 0 9 24 BY CHARLES ZAMARIA Over the past several years, we have witnessed unprecedented growth in Internet consumption and more recently, an escalation of video on the web. Streamed or downloaded video content – both short and long form – is the current craving of many who use the Internet on a regular basis. As broadband provides more opportunity for seamless and uninterrupted distribution, the use of online video has increased exponentially. And at last, after many years of denial, the television industry appears to finally “get it.” After watching the effects of digital distribution on the music and newspaper industries, broadcasters are quickly making programming accessible online. But do broadcasters really get it? Is the web the place to watch television after all? Besides directly downloading and streaming television programming online, IPTV is another example of an attempt by broadcasters (and other corporate interests) to port television to the Internet. ThroughWi-Fi, Wi-Max, cable DSL, and satellite, IPTV essentially provides an opportunity for TV viewing via broadband. Does this promise to gather a strong audience? Perhaps not. Internet users don’t see themselves as an audience . As digital consumers are repeatedly surveyed, monitored and studied, the more we begin to understand the overwhelming attraction of the Internet. New research reveals Internet users are seeking a unique experience when online. From social networking to sampling content to aimlessly browsing, the web is being used to seek out destinations as well as provide content and programming. The attraction of the Internet is found in the experience of being part of a broader community. Online engagement is not an isolated activity as it is with other traditional media. While using the Internet, it is common to listen to music, watch television or talk on the telephone simultaneously. Internet users are more participants than audience in a complex and rapidly changing online world. Is this a suitable place for television? Results from an ongoing international study conducted by member countries of the World Internet Project (WIP), indicate that while the Internet may have begun as a conduit to satisfy specific needs, it is now perceived as a destination in itself. Jeff Cole, Director of the Center for the Digital Future and the headquarters for the WIP at University of Southern California in Los Angeles said: “Findings from research conducted over the last decade indicate more and more people venture online primarily for engagement and interaction with others. They see the Internet as a location to visit and experience, just as one would travel to a new place. Almost nine of 10 Internet users report they browse online with no destination in mind, and most do so regularly. Non-specific surfing is the most popular use of the Internet. Searching for information and entertainment may be the end result, but being online is more about exploration and discovery of place. The Internet is as much a place and destination as anything else.” Just like the transporter in Star Trek, the Internet provides an opportunity to travel to destinations and encounter various levels of engagement. And the very journey or the opportunity to explore, interact and engage without a specific purpose is what most drives online traffic. The Internet is not just a distribution conduit like so many other media, but an experience unto itself. While an endless supply of video content online satisfies many, the Internet is evolving beyond just another distribution platform like television. Online sampling of content appears to be a more widespread activity than attending to full length programming. It is perhaps symptomatic of the changing pattern of consumption and behaviour brought about by the Internet. The Internet just ain’t TV. Broadcasters are attempting to take advantage of the overwhelming lure of the Internet. While they may have been slow to adapt to the convergent realities, most broadcasters now see the Internet as key to their business model. And an absolute necessity for this new business model to work is making content available online. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. Or better still, if you follow your audience as they trek by the millions from television sets to computer screens, you may just be able to take advantage of this migration and further monetize your content… or, perhaps just use the Internet to promote your own core television product…heck, at the very least, survive. This may be too simple a model to work. Internet users have much greater expectations, and these expectations continue to grow. That is the nature of the Internet. The web is unlike any other medium we have known. The key for success is understanding not just how it is used, but whyit is used. Seemingly, traditional media has been hit hard by the online revolution we are now encountering. Who would have thought the telegraph would cease to exist, or that the number of book sales it takes to make the New York Timesbest sellers list would be reduced to a mere fraction of what it used to be? Recently, newspaper subscription and readership have plummeted greatly, and movie theater attendance has been decimated. However, the cries lamenting the ruination of traditional media due to the want and demand of newer media are somewhat incorrect. To paraphrase Mark Twain, reports of its death have been greatly exaggerated. The WIP study indicates that consumption of traditional media has diminished, but not to the extent previously believed. Nor has increased traffic online stemmed from a decrease in traditional media consumption. Jeff Cole believes the answer more complex than one media simply dominating and displacing another: In the long history of mass media, no medium has ever fully disappeared. Instead, most have adapted and changed. Traditional media must adapt and find new relationships with other media and provide value in its own right. Levels of television viewing, newspaper reading, and radio listening have certainly fluctuated in the digital era, but they have not and will not disappear entirely. Each medium is unique and satisfies specific niches. The Internet is unlike any other and will find its draw from its ability to provide experiences, not just content. Even so, original platforms for traditional media will continue to serve attractive and useful purpose amidst this time of change. In other words, the sky is not falling for broadcasters and there may be opportunity for both the Internet and television to co-exist together quite amicably, actually complementing each other. Convergent, re-purposed and crossover content? Certainly. Take a look at Canada and the success of the Bell Fund in sponsoring hundreds of successful cross-platform projects, several of which have won International Emmys. But retransmission of television programming online may overlook the full potential of the Internet. Moving forward, television on the Internet may not take into account what most people expect when online. Statistics and ratings indicate that youth and young adults use the Internet significantly more than any other demographic, and they do so directly at the expense of watching television. But now studies are beginning to see a relationship between media choices and life stage. In other words, as they grow older, younger folks appear to increase their use of more traditional media such as television and newspapers. The motivation for being online continues, but its attraction is quite distinct compared to other media. Results from the WIP study show little difference in consumption levels of traditional media between those who use the Internet versus those who don’t across all age groups (surprisingly, in North America there is still about 1/5 of the population that is not online). In Canada, for example, those who use the Internet spend approximately 45.3 hours per week consuming a variety of 13 common traditional media. Canadian Internet non-users use the same media for 46 hours per week. These findings are quite extraordinary. The amount of time spent attending to several traditional media including television, radio, books, newspapers, and films is almost the same for both Internet users and non-users. Apparently, the Internet is not drastically displacing the traditional media audience after all. Moreover, the WIP study has found that those who use the Internet more frequently than others seem to use all other media more. Media use begets more media use. People are supplementing their traditional media diet with what they find online, though, there remains tremendous loyalty and appetite for these media on their original platforms. Web sites references from this article: www.canadaonline.ca; www.worldinternetproject.net; www.digitalcenter.org; www.bellfund.ca N e w M e d i a The Internet Is a Destination, It Ain’t Television Charles Zamaria is a Professor at Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada. He is Director of the Canadian Internet Project, and serves as Financial Director for several Canadian television and new media funding agencies.
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