The Evolution of Internet Television

Thanks to the use of live streaming, macromedia flash players, and a little site by the name of YouTube, the Internet has drastically changed television viewing. And television has also made its mark on the Internet.

Television itself evolved greatly over time as the simple cathode ray tube became more and more advanced. In the age of plasma and high-definition televisions, the Internet has also caused this popular activity to evolve. Before the development of such products as the Tivo and other DVR devices, television shows ran on rigid schedules. If a viewer wished to watch a certain show, he or she had to be at home, parked in front of the tube, during the specific timeslot during which the show ran. If the viewer wished to use the restroom or retrieve a beverage during the television show, he or she had to time these little trips to the commercial breaks, which were slated so that a 30-minute program actually contained only 22 minutes of actual programming.

With the invention of the VCR, television habits changed slightly because after many hours spent consulting thick manuals, a viewer could hypothetically record a certain program to watch later, or at the very least figure out how to get the device to stop showing 12:00 AM all the time. Television shows were recorded on clunky VHS cassettes that could hold up to six hours of programming depending on recording format. With the release of the DVR, viewers could do the same without relying on a VCR and clunky VHS cassettes.

The Internet streamlined the viewing process even further. It is very simple, not to mention a commonality, to forget to record or "TiVo" a program of choice. In this case, the viewer is simply out of luck unless the network decides to air reruns. Thanks to the Internet, missing a favorite television program ceases to be a cause for concern.

Most major networks have added bandwidth to their home sites in order to host several of the most recent aired episodes of their most popular programs. These programs are hosted on the site and fans need not even download the large files onto their hard drive. Instead of worrying about storage space and waiting on the file download, viewers can simply click the episode they want to watch and thanks to streaming files, they can watch it immediately. The eight minutes of commercials are even cut out of these programs, and the act breaks are marked by twenty-second ads from the sponsors. Viewers can sit down at their computers, select their episode, and watch it without any problems or fuss. It is possible to watch old episodes weeks after they've aired, and this new practice is especially welcome because it allows viewers to rewatch their favorite episodes of the past season during the summer hiatuses, before the season DVDs are released.

YouTube, a site currently owned by the search engine giant Google, is another media outlet that has revolutionized the Internet-television connection. Viewers with the right equipment (often a simple fire wire) are able to record their favorite programs onto their computers. From there, they can post these programs, or smaller sections known as "clips," onto YouTube. The process is remarkably simple, especially because YouTube allows for the upload of numerous file types, even the little used .flv extension.

In some cases, the uploading of television programs onto a video search engine and sharing site like YouTube serves the same purpose as network home sites that stream recent episodes of popular series. Viewers who do not like the format of the network sites can go to www.youtube.com, search for their television program by name, and watch on the site. YouTube does not require or even offer downloads, just like most network sites, and viewers can pause the file at any time.

In other cases, YouTube can be used as a historical archive. Users can upload clips or entire episodes of television programs that have been off the air for years. This is excellent for fans of television shows that failed to appeal to the masses, like Joss Whedon's sci-fi series "Firefly," Steven Spielburg's wonderful postmodern cartoon "Animaniacs," or Mitchell Hurwitz's stunningly brilliant satire "Arrested Development." Fan sites devoted to such shows often feature links to YouTube episodes or clips that members can watch when they need a fix.

In still other cases, YouTube helps bridge international television divides. For example, anime has been booming in popularity in the States. Asian cartoons like "Naruto," "Cowboy BeBop," and "Case Closed" (a cancelled detective series) have found fans all over the world, not just in their native countries, and oftentimes those fans that live abroad do not have access to these shows. Because of this, fans of the show that live in the areas where the anime shows are broadcasted upload old and new episodes onto YouTube so that fans living in the States or England, for example, can view them and keep up with the engaging storylines.

Another great thing about YouTube is that it not only allows for the proliferation of old, new, and obscure television shows, but also for opinions regarding these shows. YouTube allows registered viewers to post comments in response to all video clips (provided that the poster that uploaded the clip allows this). This way, fans can watch an episode or a clip and then leave a response about their reactions, etc. Other fans can read these comments and reply, and such an interface fosters discussion among fans of certain shows. This is a very different social context than the traditional habit of sitting in a room in one's private home and watching an episode as it airs.

Another popular trend to emerge from the new Internet-television connection is something called "alternate television" and "mvids." These are created by fans from clips of television programs. The process is very simple if one has the correct software. Oftentimes, fans post episodes of a television show (again, sans commercials) onto websites. These files are hosted on private servers and are therefore available to download. Other fans can download these episodes onto their hard drives.

If one does this, it is very easy to create an alternate reality program or a music video using programs such as Windows Movie Maker. An alternate reality program relies on aired clips of the show, but the creator (or "vidder") edits the clips together in a different way. Acting as a director, the vidder selects certain character scenes and camera angles, splicing these together to create a "new" scene from aired clips. The spliced clips are then saved together into one file. Once the movie file is uploaded onto a hosting site, other viewers can watch and/or download the file.

The same holds true for mvids, or music videos, which are featured prominently on YouTube. Using a program like Windows Movie Maker, one needs only to download episode clips and the song of choice to make one. The song selected is set as the audio file, and the clips are spliced and added to the movie based on the timeline or the song lyrics. In this way, fans are able to use songs to emphasize certain emotions and tell another story using their favorite episode clips. Fans of romantic pairings on television shows (for example, Ross and Rachel on "Friends," Sydney and Vaughn on "Alias," Clark and Lana on "Smallville," Jason and Elizabeth on "General Hospital," or Jim and Pam on "The Office") can edit episodes for clips of their favorite couple, and fan sites devoted to romantic television pairings often offer downloads or download links to the scenes their couples share. Fans can create romantic videos to emphasize a couple's love, sad videos to illustrate a couple that's parting ways, and so on. The possibilities are truly endless, and reflect yet another way for television viewers to not only watch their favorite programs but illustrate their own creativity and passion for these programs.

The Internet has truly revolutionized how some people watch television, and vice versa. If a viewer misses an episode of his or her favorite show, sites like YouTube offer online versions. Fans of old and cancelled shows can watch long forgotten clips and revisit their favorite characters; that is, the Internet actually resurrects popular television shows from the past that are no longer featured on the air. And fans of virtually any television program can splice together certain scenes and create "new" episodes or simply illustrate their love of certain characters or romantic pairings. Thanks to the Internet, watching television has become an even more interactive activity: fans of television programs do not have to watch their shows in solitude but can converse with other fans about a mutual interest. There are even certain programs that are only broadcasted via "webisodes," meaning that they will never be aired on television and only online. Such developments will continue to change how people all over the world watch television. Stay tuned for more at this rate, everything will soon be a mere mouse-click away!