Since we got Sky+ late last year I’m already noticing that it’s changing my attitude towards the gogglebox. But let’s rewind a bit first.
Despite having a video recorder we rarely, if ever, used it. Sheer laziness, coupled with growing apathy about even watching television, was the main reason. If I did spot something I might want to watch the thought of having to check to find a tape I could use, then confront the recording options, was usually enough to put me off. Admittedly I’m quite happy with the fact that TV is a transistory medium, it’s not really meant to be around forever that’s why it’s broadcast. I think.
Anyway, recording with Sky+ is so much easier. Zip through the TV planner/guide and if you spot something you want to record you hit the little [ R ] button on the remote. Done. If it’s a series you can hit another (green) button and it’ll search for the rest of the programmes in the series and record them for you too (currently it’s set for Desperate Housewives).
And of course watching TV is now completely different. On Tuesday night Louise goes out with Susan so I chucked my dinner in the oven (pasta bake) and decided to watch last weeks Desperate Housewives. I skipped through the adverts, paused when I was fetching my dinner from the oven and then started watching ‘live’ TV. My brother-in-law phoned and I paused the episode of Frasier I was watching, and then hit fast forward past the adverts again. It’s simple enough, but it’s impact is exponential.
Question – would you pay to watch a specific TV programme? Or would you pay NOT to have to watch adverts (I’ll leave the whole BBC thing out of the equation at the moment).
The reason I ask is simple enough, the advertisers are worried. With the growth of PVR systems (Personal Video Recorder) fewer people will watch ‘live’ TV and so fewer people will watch the adverts. I’m already in this category and I’ve only got a couple of programmes ready to be watched at any one time. Once I upgrade the capacity of the Sky+ box I’ll be recording a lot more of the stuff we enjoy but don’t mind missing (Frasier, Simpsons etc), and spending a little longer checking BBC3 and 4 and the documentary channels so we have a good bank of programmes at our disposal. It won’t stop live TV altogether but it will definitely change the way we watch TV dramatically.
Next up, push TV?
Anyway, what are your TV viewing habits? What programmes do you never miss?