Blog Post 2

Changes in the Cable Television Market

 

There has always been a standard way for viewers to access television via a cable subscription. This method has worked for decades in the television world, but it is slowly fading away due to the increase in popularity of services such as Netflix and Hulu Plus. HBO Go is an alternative for its viewership to watch previous seasons and episodes online with a paid membership. CBS has recently joined the web trend by deciding to create its own web subscription service. In the New York Times article, "CBS to Offer Stand-Alone Web Subscription Service", Emily Steel describes the change that CBS has chosen to make with its programming access. Previously CBS has been limited with its shows being available online, past and present seasons. In 2008, CBS chose to opt out of joining its competitors, ABC, NBC and Fox, when they created an online web service named Hulu (Steele). CBS is seen as a conservative network, because it stays true to its old methods of television access. McLuhan states, “the ‘content’ of any medium is always another medium (8).” According to him, television flows through many different forms of media outlets. CBS has taken this idea and ran with it in the best way possible.

In the web service labeled "CBS All Access", the viewers of the station have an option to pay a fee that will make local and previous CBS television shows available online. The change marks a large step for the network, because CBS usually is not the first of its rivals to begin a trend. CBS has gained the rights to pioneer the streaming service idea for a major cable network. The new all access service suits well with the changing times of a casual audience. “Comfort consists in abandoning a visual arrangement in favor of one that permits casual participation of the senses (McLuhan 32)”. The transformation into a streaming service is a positive move for CBS, and it may lead to a wider range of audience views as more people are likely to stream shows than ever before.

 

Sources

 

Yahoo News Article: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/cbs-offer-stand-alone-subscription-130026588.html

 

From the readings, McLuhan: Understanding Media