On the Screen

Netflix popularized watch-what-you-want-when-you-want video, and the big players (television networks, cable, and satellite companies) in the TV industry have resisted mightily:

Viewers have long wanted to pay only for the channels they watch, not the bundle that cable companies foist upon them. Television executives have resisted, rightly fearing that doing away with the bundle could tear apart a business with annual revenues of around $150 billion.

Unlike newspapers and the music industry, which saw their businesses sink with the rise of the internet, change has come gradually.

The reward for being first to abandon the old business model proved too alluring to HBO and CBS, however, both of whom announced an internet subscription service. The switchover from traditional TV to streaming should occur slowly because of inertia (which couch potatoes have in plentiful supply), the slow pace of demographic change, and convenience (subscribing to multiple providers vs. getting one bill). Nevertheless, the handwriting is on the screen.