Has the CBS eye seen the light? CBS research found that online video isn’t cannibalizing networks, but expands audiences according to Anders Bylund of ArsTechnica.
CBS conducted a poll on online viewing habits and found out that at least half of those online views were of shows the user had never seen on television, and often became a new fan of the show. That suggests that Internet video services are expanding the networks’ audience rather than cannibalizing it, while giving existing audiences an additional medium in which to find shows they missed.
“We’re looking at this as a key change in direction for us now and looking at our programming as dual distribution programming—over the air and on the Internet,” said David Poltrack, chief research officer at CBS Corporation.
As a fan of Craig Ferguson, I’ve got to think that having his monologues posted in YouTube’s front page ”director’ strip of clips has to be a smart move. He’s topical, and he may lack the hipster edge of Conan O’Brien, I think his monologues are better, more rounded, more personal, not just a series of gags. A great taster for a show that gets zero media coverage. I may be biased, of course. But he’s definately the second funniest Scotsman on the YouTube.
Yeah well I think Ellen is funny. So there.
I agree with mark. I actually wasn’t aware of Craig Ferguson’s humour until YouTube, so take that for what it’s worth. Here’s CBS’s official press release: http://www.cbscorporation.com/news/prdetails.php?id=1264 ( thanks to http://www.paidcontent.org )
My only issue is that Networks are still missing the point. Rather than using the Internet to drive viewers to their networks, they should be figuring out how to establish the web as an viable end-destination for viewers. It’s heading that way anyway, whichever network get’s there first will do very well.
In that respect the network’s approach to online video is not unlike the publisher’s first move into online content… it was all about selling people on subscriptions.