The days when broadcast and cable television would impose high fees on consumers simply because they have limited options are long gone. Today, thanks to the high speed internet offered by various internet providers such as Virgin Media coupled along with availability of different content streaming companies and the wide variety of media devices, consumers do not have to condone the exploitation. It is time to say goodbye to the traditional television and welcome a new era dubbed as the age of the YouTube network.
For a long time, YouTube and sites such a Vimeo have been providing consumers with user-generated content hence have put in place the infrastructure needed to take care of the new demand. Other outlets such us Netflix, iTunes and Amazon are currently working hard to have everything in place by archiving existing materials or expanding their archives.
Perhaps one of the most unique online channels is My Damn Channel. The co-founder Rob Barnett describes it as a place for ”original, native, digital content created by big name talent.” The company was started in 2007 and was an instant hit. It went ahead and won a number of awards and managed to attract a number of stars who featured in hit series such as Wainy Days and Horrible People. This led to Barnett asking,” If Internet video is a baseball game, what inning are we in?”
He answered himself by saying,” When [Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix] started to come just in the last year with premium original digital series with top talent,it certainly entered into the second inning. The moves being made are placing those networks in competition with the HBOs, Showtimes, AMCs of the world.” This goes to show you just how the industry has transformed.
When My Damn Channel launched six years ago and introduced Wainy Days, no one ever thought it would succeed. Six years down the line and the YouTube show has been able to draw a total of 9 million viewers over the last five seasons.
In as much as Netflix offers classics people have already seen together with thing people were never meant to see, there are other channels such as YouTube which have small creative teams that provide niche content to interactive audiences. A number of the videos found on YouTube are very popular and have even managed to attract billions of viewers from around the world.
With more and more channels getting into the business, it is only a matter of time before these online channels are fully embraced. One thing we can all agree on is the readiness of the internet. These channels offer consumers an alternative to television programing that have been gracing our households for ages. It is about time we embrace the change.
