Is commercial TV in trouble?

[sc_rufctr]

I don't watch a lot of TV because frankly it's pretty crappy and I have better things to do with my spare time but...

Things are not good for the commercial channels down here. Both Channel 9 and 10 are broke and loosing money. Channel 7 seems to be doing OK but they've always been number three.
Recently we got a heap of free to air digital channels that present some variety but again nothing really new or worth watching IMO.

If you like watching re runs of The Love Boat or Gilligan's Island then you'd be happy

And the commercials seem to be synchronised.

What's TV like in the US?

My sister lives in Denver and she tells me Aus TV is very much like US TV.

[HardDrive]

"Is commercial TV in trouble?"

God I hope so.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Dunno, don't watch it. If it weren't for sports I wouldn't ever bother turning it on, with the exception of the odd non-NASCAR race or car program that is on.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Good riddance.

Cable isn't much better. Can't think of the last thing I watched on either to be honest.

[RANDY P]

I don't even have cable or rabbit ears. Whenever I have the misfortune of seeing a TV that is on it's always

-Amerikan Idle.
- stupid "reality" tv shows
-MSNBC liberal lies
-"talk" shows based on identity politics (Think THE VIEW)
-trash TV. Honey bo boo or Judge Judy.
-lawyer commercials. (WTF!)

I can't even IMAGINE interacting with people who take most of those shows seriously, let alone paying monthly to see that garbage. The very fact any of them have traction is proof of decline of western civilization.

We have made entertainment too easy to access, that's why the deadbeats stay home, don't work and eat cheetos while watching Jerry Springer.

rjp

[ossiblue]

Agree with all the above comments--except for a few occasional programs, everything on commercial TV is a waste of time (I am including "free" over the air and cable/satellite in my definition of commercial.)

The problem is a variation on what happened to broadcast news. When the news broadcast was 15 minutes to a half-hour, you got solid, real news being reported. When stations opened up the "news" to one-hour blocks which continue or three hours (now, 24 hours), they had to hunt up and eventually create enough news to fill the time slots. We all know any real news is covered within the first five minutes of any commercial news broadcast.

Same thing with commercial, cable, satellite t.v. Too many channels, not enough quality material because that would cost big dollars--more than could be covered by the return on the advertising, the investment on hardware, and subscriptions. IMO, the only thing keeping this business model alive is the regulated monopoly which makes a broadcast company the only game in town, along with the other features they offer--internet and phone services, for example. TV has become secondary in importance.

And to the OP, yes, it is the same here in the U.S. And the commercials are synchronized. When cable first arrived, you could flip between stations to different shows and avoid commercials, not anymore. I'm sure it's part of the package deal the broadcaster offers the advertisers (who are paying the bills) to guarantee the viewers stay around to watch the commercial as it does no good to flip around because they will only view another commercial .

[willtel]

I love all the comments from people claiming they don't watch TV saying TV sucks. How would you know?

I think a good number of affiliate channels are going to fold soon. Instant access to news and weather information have made thier exsistance redundant.

Larry King recently left CNN and now does a show that is only available via the Internet on Hulu. It is financed by Carlos Slim Helú because be believes the future of broadcast media is on the Internet.

[widebody911]

Originally Posted by willtel

I love all the comments from people claiming they don't watch TV saying TV sucks. How would you know?

Because we're incidentally exposed to just enough of it to know that we don't want any more.

[RANDY P]

Originally Posted by willtel

I love all the comments from people claiming they don't watch TV saying TV sucks. How would you know?

I think a good number of affiliate channels are going to fold soon. Instant access to news and weather information have made thier exsistance redundant.

Larry King recently left CNN and now does a show that is only available via the Internet on Hulu. It is financed by Carlos Slim Helú because be believes the future of broadcast media is on the Internet.

How do you think we formed these opinions? I subscribed to cable for years, and killed it 5 years ago. Best decision I ever made.

rjp

[pitargue]

With Apple TV, Google TV, etc, and downloadable content at the user's whim, with programming defined by the user, commercial TV is on it's way out. Youtube and Hulu have started the viewing habits of the younger generation, and when these people get older, they will never miss what they never experienced.

Just like CD's and DVD's being replaced by downloadable content. It's just a matter of time...

[Seahawk]

If Video killed the radio star, then DVR's are killing the TV star.

I like TV and have DirecTV...since I like movies but hate going to a movie theater, I record the movies I want and watch them when it is best for me.

I haven't been to a movie theater in ten years.

[widgeon13]

I think the major networks are in trouble ABC, CBS and NBC. I would rather watch reruns of Lonesome Dove and Old Clint Eastwood movies than the crap on network TV.

[Bill Douglas]

I enjoy not having the TV on. I religiously watch the news, Coronations Street without fail, and a few other things. But I don't plant myself in front of it for the evening and watch any old rubbish.

[Joeaksa]

Originally Posted by HardDrive

"Is commercial TV in trouble?"

God I hope so.

Ditto!

Could care less about them and am getting a new system that pulls things off of the internet so I can avoid commercial TV.

Couple that with their bias in the last 15 years of elections and I could care less if the majors and CNN go tits up. As long as the History Channel and Discovery are around I am happy...

[Joeaksa]

Originally Posted by willtel

I love all the comments from people claiming they don't watch TV saying TV sucks. How would you know?

I think a good number of affiliate channels are going to fold soon. Instant access to news and weather information have made thier exsistance redundant.

Larry King recently left CNN and now does a show that is only available via the Internet on Hulu. It is financed by Carlos Slim Helú because be believes the future of broadcast media is on the Internet.

Some of us travel for a living and watch the TV in hotel rooms. When at home its rarely on. Listening to XM right now after watching the news on Internet TV earlier this morning...

[onewhippedpuppy]

I think the networks jumped the shark years ago. All that's on now are lame sitcoms, some variety of crime or medical drama, remakes, and reality TV. I'm pretty much convinced that Hollywood is out of new ideas. The only series that I watch is The Walking Dead, which is on AMC.

I keep cable for network sports in HD, ESPN, Discovery, Velocity, Speed, History, BBC-America, AMC, and the Military Channel. It takes me about 10 seconds to channel surf.

[aigel]

The stations will go the way of print media.

I don't need TV - I have PPOT!

G

[aigel]

Originally Posted by willtel

I love all the comments from people claiming they don't watch TV saying TV sucks. How would you know?

Hotels!

[romad]

yes

[URY914]

I'm on this damn forum more now than I watch TV.