Let’s pause to consider all the great network programming…
Over at Slate you’ll find Andy Bowers considering the possibility that the iTunes video service might save cancelled television shows. In particular, Bowers sees it as a way to prop up “The West Wing” now that the network has pulled the plug. It’s not a new idea entirely. Sci-fi fan boards lately have been abuzz with it. It’s a variation on what the folks who were trying to extend the run of “Enterprise” tried to do when they started raising money to pay for a new season out of pocket.
It’s an attractive idea. As a sci-fi fan, I know that I’ve mourned the early death of many a promising show (“Firefly,” anyone?). Imagine if these shows with strong, devoted cult followings managed to either raise the fan money or build the iTunes “subscriber” base to a point where they could be supported without advertising revenue. Networks could continue well-loved shows that hadn’t found their audience yet in an iTunes-based limbo where good writing and new ideas were given a second chance. Why, it would be a Christmas miracle!
Here’s why it won’t work.
First of all, it won’t work because networks and the majority of cable channels – like most of the entertainment industry – are still clinging to outmoded ideas of technology and its ability to make money. It took a huge leap for these channels to even put shows with strong viewerships onto the iTunes store, and that only appears to be an extension of the shows-on-DVD model. Of the shows that started on iTunes, only one could be determined “risky” – and, sure enough, “Night Stalker” was cancelled soon afterward.
This is a segment of the industry that is still preoccupied with trying to find ways to keep you from scanning through commercials on your Tivo. They are bogged down in the revenue from advertising – which, if you remember, was what initially allowed broadcast television to be free. Now we pay hefty monthly cable bills to get our programming and still sit through commercials. Hell, even AMC – which used to be commercial-free – chops up its movies with commercial breaks.
Even if the networks decide that new episodes for iTunes are a great idea, it’s not likely to happen right away, and it’s not likely to be what people expect. Fans of “Firefly” might be champing at the bit to see new episodes, but if Fox decides to put new content on the iTunes store, it’ll most likely be a “greatest moments” special or a cast reunion – not new episodes. You may see special uncensored versions of shows being sold. You might eventually see extended “Director’s Cuts” of episodes. But the road to brand spankin’ new episodes of your favorite cult hit on iTunes is a long way away.
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This is the other reason this model won’t work – because deep down inside, the fans don’t want it to work. Many have referred to it as a PBS model, but there’s a vast difference between chipping in a few bucks every few months to help a local channel buy blocks of pre-existing programming and making a consistent weekly purchase of a series episode-by-episode.
Sure, it seems like a good idea at first glance. Viewers who love a show pitch the iTunes store $1.99 a week. In return, they get brand new episodes of a show that would otherwise be a long-distant memory consigned to the depths with The Tick and other cult hits that lasted less time than a Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shop in Hell. But when you add together the cost of the typical cable package – which you’ll still want because of all of the programming that isn’t on iTunes – with internet access and then consider that you’re going to be paying 1.99 a pop to support your favorite cult shows, you can see that it’s going to add up quickly.
Think for a moment of the great shows you loved that were cancelled early. If you’re a sci-fi fan, this shouldn’t be too hard. Need some help? Here’s a list off the top of my head.
- The Tick
- Strange Luck
- Lone Gunmen
- Nightmare Cafe
- Myster Science Theatre 3000 (Sure, it was a long run – I still want more.)
- Kindred: The Embraced
- The Adventures of Brisco County Jr.
- Firefly
- American Gothic
- Dead Like Me
(Before people jump on me – yes, I know it’s way too late to make new episodes of “Nightmare Cafe” or “Brisco County.” Just limit yourselves to the last four years, I’m fairly certain you’ll still come up with a decent list)
I could continue. But by this time, we can see that I have 10 shows listed, bringing me to an even 19.90 a week. A week, presuming a regular weekly release schedule for each of these shows and that the networks didn’t force a flexible pricing scheme on Apple (or whatever venue they chose to sell through). For at least a couple months out of the year, my bill for supporting my favorite shows has pushed me up an additional 51.60 a month (presuming I’ve done my math right – I’m too tired at this point to check). I’m ashamed to admit that the last few times PBS had a pledge drive (that I saw) I only chipped in about 20 bucks – and the last time I didn’t even do that because I couldn’t afford the 20.
And what do we get for our 51.60? Well, new episodes of “Dead Like Me” are nice – especially given the fact that Ellen Muth is my new celebrity crush – but we have to ask what the quality of the episodes would be. It’s already been said by industry insiders that the lower resolution of iTunes videos would mean that less money needed to be spent on costumes and sets. With no advertising revenue (remember, they’re still chasing the advertising dollar) they would cut corners everywhere they could to make the profit margin greater. This means fewer locations, fewer guest stars, and – for you sci-fi fans – fewer special effects. So we pay more for a lower-quality product (that we’re told is all right because it’s lower-resolution).
Meanwhile, this means that the network has to take even fewer chances with its actual line-up. In the past, shows like “Cheers” succeeded because the networks gave them time to grow. In previous years, we’ve bemoaned the networks’ inability to take similar chances now. Can you imagine the response of the networks if they knew they could just slash a show’s budget by 90%, move it to iTunes, and watch money roll in from the show’s dedicated fan base? No more chances taken on the schedule – fly right away, or we dump you. End of story.
I hate it when quality programming gets cancelled – but iTunes and similar services should not be used as a televisual ressurection man, digging up the networks’ corpses and peddling them off to eager fans. If anything, what iTunes needs is to become a nursery for possible new programming. The iTunes Music Store created a stir when it opened itself to indie and self-distributed artists through a deal with CDBaby. What they need now is a similar method for budding content providers to sell their product through the video store. We already have video-casting for free, now let’s find a way to let the indie videographers make a few cents in the process.