5 ms·

Internet TV will be a viable platform when more than 15% of households have a TV with an actual Internet connection. I have no interest in seeing Conan do a fac

by ryandvm 17y ago

Internet TV will be a viable platform when more than 15% of households have a TV with an actual Internet connection. I have no interest in seeing Conan do a face plant for the sake of being Revision3's IPTV pioneer.

steveklabnik 17y ago
I'm admittedly in the "young kid just out of college" demographic, but I'm not sure I know anyone who doesn't just use their TV as a big monitor, or has an AppleTV with Boxee, or doesn't own a TV and watches Hulu on their laptop. And isn't this Conan's core fanbase anyway? I'm not saying it wouldn't be a risky move, but history rewards the bold.
- jerhinesmith 17y ago
  I don't do any of those things and I'm only 5 years out of college. Does that mean I'm old? Either way, I think there's still something to be said for just watching 'tv' in the historical definition. My guess is that you and your acquaintances are still in a very small minority (though I'd be happy to be proved wrong as I'm not entirely happy with my cable service provided).
  - opoloqo 17y ago
    just watching 'tv' in the historical definition is a massive waste of time. I have multiple lifetimes of content already tagged and queued. I have no time for bullshit old school network control and manipulation. I made my own network.
    - madh 17y ago
      Making your own network took effort and time, no?
      - opoloqo 17y ago
        time and effort yes. At this time my collection of web services is basically an organism that feeds my mind. It took time and effort to start the feedback loop but now the loop provides more than I can consume.
    - mbreese 17y ago
      How much of that is original IPTV content? In this context, pulling things down from bittorrent doesn't count.
      - opoloqo 17y ago
        IPTV is not part of my vocabulary. Bittorrent is a pain. I use netflix, ted, fora.tv, youtube, vimeo and whatever else percolates into my spectrum of social content aggregators, google reader, facebook.
        mbreese 17y ago
        IPTV / Internet TV / basically Revision 3 style content with defined shows that come out on a somewhat regular schedule.
  - opoloqo 17y ago
    re: small minority. Yesterday I was sitting in a dark old-timer bar in MT and heard two of the old salts telling some younger guys (mid-40s) about the wonder of Netflix. I am experiencing this more and more with people. Just a short matter of time.
    - saturdayplace 17y ago
      > Just a short matter of time. Obviously, in Conan's case NBC has proven that they're not willing to wait for any reasonably short time period when trying out new things. I'm betting the reason that's the case is because advertisers aren't either. Until the advertising dollar moves onto the Internet, it's not going to make sense for a Conan to do the same. I agree that it's a matter of time before we stop talking about IPTV as something new or separate from TV, but that timeframe isn't going to be determined as much by consumers (your old salts) as it is by the advertisers.
- mbreese 17y ago
  You are in a very small minority. I think the better question is: do your parents? I'm ten years out of college, and while I am able to connect my computer to my TV to watch Hulu, etc, it isn't a permanent setup. I have the cables in place to just plug things in, but only on the TV in my living room. My bedroom TV is capable, but I don't have the cables in place. Conan has a pretty broad fan base. He's been doing this for years. So, unless you can sell me on the fact that 85% of his target audience has this type of setup, it's a bad idea. Not only that, but the setup has to be permanent and drop-dead simple. So, unless you are a 100% Hulu kinda person, we're talking about a dedicated device attached to the TV that could tune in his show from a remote control. Access to the show would have to be as ubiquitous as a traditional TV. This is the only way to keep the numbers in the range that advertisers would demand.
  - steveklabnik 17y ago
    My parents don't have cable. My dad watches Steeler games, my mom watches Dancing with the Stars, and they occasionally watch the morning news. That's it. The friends I speak of range from 18-35. > Not only that, but the setup has to be permanent and drop-dead simple. I'm not sure what's hard about Boxee, Netflix over the XBox, or even just having a computer hooked up to a television in general. It's not like there's a difference between them now, other than size.
    - dasil003 17y ago
      I'm not sure what's hard about Boxee, Netflix over the XBox, or even just having a computer hooked up to a television in general. It's not like there's a difference between them now, other than size. Definitely agree about Boxee and Netflix. They are designed around providing a simple user experience, and all the consumer needs is familiarity. Plugging in a computer is another matter though. There's a mental barrier there that people will just never overcome. Computers are complicated, and people use them for other things (okay maybe only web surfing and email). They don't want to plug it in and start a program, no matter how simple it is. Even if the program was henceforth telepathic and let you watch any content instantaneously in HD it would be a hard sell. Dedicated boxes are the way this will go.

by ryandvm 17y ago

steveklabnik 17y ago

I'm admittedly in the "young kid just out of college" demographic, but I'm not sure I know anyone who doesn't just use their TV as a big monitor, or has an AppleTV with Boxee, or doesn't own a TV and watches Hulu on their laptop. And isn't this Conan's core fanbase anyway? I'm not saying it wouldn't be a risky move, but history rewards the bold.

jerhinesmith 17y ago
I don't do any of those things and I'm only 5 years out of college. Does that mean I'm old? Either way, I think there's still something to be said for just watching 'tv' in the historical definition. My guess is that you and your acquaintances are still in a very small minority (though I'd be happy to be proved wrong as I'm not entirely happy with my cable service provided).
- opoloqo 17y ago
  just watching 'tv' in the historical definition is a massive waste of time. I have multiple lifetimes of content already tagged and queued. I have no time for bullshit old school network control and manipulation. I made my own network.
  - madh 17y ago
    Making your own network took effort and time, no?
    - opoloqo 17y ago
      time and effort yes. At this time my collection of web services is basically an organism that feeds my mind. It took time and effort to start the feedback loop but now the loop provides more than I can consume.
  - mbreese 17y ago
    How much of that is original IPTV content? In this context, pulling things down from bittorrent doesn't count.
    - opoloqo 17y ago
      IPTV is not part of my vocabulary. Bittorrent is a pain. I use netflix, ted, fora.tv, youtube, vimeo and whatever else percolates into my spectrum of social content aggregators, google reader, facebook.
      - mbreese 17y ago
        IPTV / Internet TV / basically Revision 3 style content with defined shows that come out on a somewhat regular schedule.
- opoloqo 17y ago
  re: small minority. Yesterday I was sitting in a dark old-timer bar in MT and heard two of the old salts telling some younger guys (mid-40s) about the wonder of Netflix. I am experiencing this more and more with people. Just a short matter of time.
  - saturdayplace 17y ago
    > Just a short matter of time. Obviously, in Conan's case NBC has proven that they're not willing to wait for any reasonably short time period when trying out new things. I'm betting the reason that's the case is because advertisers aren't either. Until the advertising dollar moves onto the Internet, it's not going to make sense for a Conan to do the same. I agree that it's a matter of time before we stop talking about IPTV as something new or separate from TV, but that timeframe isn't going to be determined as much by consumers (your old salts) as it is by the advertisers.
mbreese 17y ago
You are in a very small minority. I think the better question is: do your parents? I'm ten years out of college, and while I am able to connect my computer to my TV to watch Hulu, etc, it isn't a permanent setup. I have the cables in place to just plug things in, but only on the TV in my living room. My bedroom TV is capable, but I don't have the cables in place. Conan has a pretty broad fan base. He's been doing this for years. So, unless you can sell me on the fact that 85% of his target audience has this type of setup, it's a bad idea. Not only that, but the setup has to be permanent and drop-dead simple. So, unless you are a 100% Hulu kinda person, we're talking about a dedicated device attached to the TV that could tune in his show from a remote control. Access to the show would have to be as ubiquitous as a traditional TV. This is the only way to keep the numbers in the range that advertisers would demand.
- steveklabnik 17y ago
  My parents don't have cable. My dad watches Steeler games, my mom watches Dancing with the Stars, and they occasionally watch the morning news. That's it. The friends I speak of range from 18-35. > Not only that, but the setup has to be permanent and drop-dead simple. I'm not sure what's hard about Boxee, Netflix over the XBox, or even just having a computer hooked up to a television in general. It's not like there's a difference between them now, other than size.
  - dasil003 17y ago
    I'm not sure what's hard about Boxee, Netflix over the XBox, or even just having a computer hooked up to a television in general. It's not like there's a difference between them now, other than size. Definitely agree about Boxee and Netflix. They are designed around providing a simple user experience, and all the consumer needs is familiarity. Plugging in a computer is another matter though. There's a mental barrier there that people will just never overcome. Computers are complicated, and people use them for other things (okay maybe only web surfing and email). They don't want to plug it in and start a program, no matter how simple it is. Even if the program was henceforth telepathic and let you watch any content instantaneously in HD it would be a hard sell. Dedicated boxes are the way this will go.