The TV channel you can't scan for
DISCLAIMER: This article is not aimed at demonising those that do choose to download TV from the internet. I can totally understand the point of view of those that do and their reasons for doing so, and do not intend to suggest that they should stop. More power to them. This article is simply my opinion.
 A number of my contemporaries espouse watching television downloaded from the internet as the only way to fly. When these people talk about downloading/watching TV from the internet, they mostly aren’t talking about using the badged Network channels on YouTube or using the Australian network catch-up sites (like Plus7, Fixplay or iView). They’re talking about either downloading television from any number of BitTorrent sites or using a VPN (Virtual Private Network) service so that you can use services like Hulu or the US network catch-up sites.
The benefits of downloading TV are pretty obvious: No ads/easy to skip; watch at your convenience (on the device of your convenience); watch shows hours after they air in the US/UK; get shows well ahead of their air date here in Australia; finish seasons of shows that have been buried or dumped inexplicably by the Aussie networks. The latter has tempted me many times to join the downloading club.
So why can’t we just jump onto the NBC website (for example) and watch full episodes of show from them when we want? The issue begins mainly due to copyright and licensing agreements – a lot of US (& UK) networks block access from outside their countries to their catalogue of shows online as it does/could impact their ability to sell the show into other territories (like Australia). It’s always about the money… and not unreasonably so.
Higher rating TV shows attract better advertising rates, which allows networks to funnel more money into the production of these shows. If they’re good enough, they’ll get sold internationally and gain extra life (and extra funding). A wider market equals a better share of money for the next series for, hopefully, everybody involved. It’s a commercial reality we all understand.
The intertubes - it's a series of pipes
As much as it pains me, it’s for this reason primarily that I choose to not download TV. I want to support the local & international industries by viewing it as it’s aired in my region, indirectly* adding to the ratings and therefore the profitability of the show locally. Sure, I’m gonna miss some gold. Sure, I’m gonna miss the end of some series I like (but I can always buy/hire the DVD set). Sure, I get preview discs from some Australian networks that mean I’m not subscribing to the ratings/advertisment theory, but these aren’t available to the general public and I use them to offer reviews of programs here ahead of time (to promote the show and/or warn you). Sure, I sometimes record TV to catch-up on later, however this is also now included in the ratings recording schedule. In short – I am willing to submit to the metering out of television shows as the network sees fit.
That doesn’t mean I won’t have an opinion on how the networks deliver programming to us (need I speak to you about Glee, Channel 10?). If I did start furiously downloading TV, there’d be some serious impact too – it would take up much more of my life (and I’m treading a fine line now), and it could distance me from the general public when I do want to talk TV. After all (and believe it or not) – the percentage of people who download TV instead of watching it when broadcast on free-to-air or pay TV services is quite low. Single digit low.
Of course I say all of this, and there is still news in the wind of a Australian-localised version of Hulu getting up, and the BBC have announced that they will be making their iPlayer service available globally (admittedly the content for each region will be altered based on deals). I think both of these are great ideas – more of this please, US/UK networks!
I’d appreciate hearing your thoughts, too. Do you download? Do you not? What’s your reasons for either? Am I way off the mark? Am I being too “old media”? Am I not thinking in a 21st century paradigm? Does anyone know what a 21st century paradigm is?
[* = I say indirectly as we are not an OzTAM household. Me watching a show has no direct impact on the ratings – it’s all implied. But you know what I mean. I hope.]
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Image sources: TechCrunch, BitTorrent, LifeHacker.
Currently, there are 4 shows that I download from Bit Torrent – Criminal Minds, Fringe, White Collar and Two & a Half Men. Purely because I just want to keep up-to-date with latest episode.
I would say that the first two series are receiving a fair treatment by 7 and Go! network. So, I only need to download when I desperately want to know what is going to happen next or there is a fair gap between air time. But for latter two, I can only say that it is pissed me quite fair bit to keep watching so many re-run of Two & a Half Men (and, not in a proper order) from either channel 9 and Go!. Worse, I don’t like how channel 10 treat White Collar show at all, since we are way behind (like 7 – 8 episodes behind). So, I have no choice to resource with Bit Torrent to enjoy my favourite shows.
I know, it is not right to download it. But on the positive side, I will always buy the dvd boxset of all those 4 when it comes out (might not right away, mostly just wait until JBhifi has a discount or there is special promotion for boxset at UK Amazon). Just my way to show the support for a good show.
PS. hope I explain it clear enough since Eng is not my first language. My grammar would be a bit off & confusing, I guess :-/ sorry in advance.
Jaam – your comment is fine, and thanks for offering your opinion! I can understand why people do download TV, for all the reasons you state. Interesting that you include Two and a Half Men though… but, if that’s what you like, then enjoy it. 🙂
I had no idea that the BBC were going to make their iPlayer service available worldwide. That will limit the amount of shows I watch on YouTube, certainly. I download almost everything I watch because I don’t particularly want to wait months to watch a tv show. I read about spoilers online, I see other people tweeting/blogging about episodes and I want to join in the conversation. If I had a ratings box, I would definitely at least have the tv on so the ratings were counted. But seeing as I don’t, my downloading doesn’t affect anything. Apart from the wait, there are also a lot of shows we may never get. Supernatural did not rate when it was on ch10, despite the internet support it appeared to have. They are going to air it on Channel 11 this year but by then, Australia will be more than a season behind the US. While I don’t blame the network for taking off a show that didn’t rate, it doesn’t mean I will be hanging around until they decide to put it back on.
Thanks Caitlyn for your comment – I need to dig out the press release for you about the iPlayer global release – there will indeed be more on that.
My understanding is that the version of BBC iPlayer to be available here will be mostly back-catalogue stuff, not content currently licensed to Australian networks (no new Doctor Who, for example, but maybe old series). I’ve written extensively about this subject on my blog, – most recently at http://debritz.net/node/2611 – but in summary:
+ Some programs simply are not available to viewers by any legals means (including some of my favourite UK panel shows);
+ As iTunes proved with music, downloaders WILL pay for content if it’s made available affordably and conveniently
+ Middle men (broadcasters) are coming between many shows and their audiences.
Very soon, we will see shows that bypass the traditional delivery systems entirely – as comedian Louis CK did recently with his $5 direct-to-the-punter video – and not long after that even the very big producers will be faced with some very tough decisions to make about how they draw up distribution contracts.
It’s a brave new world, folks.
I agree Brett – as borders shrink and more content is available from the original publisher legally (for free or cost), more people will adopt these measures. 2012 will indeed present it’s own changes and challenges in this regard.
The only time I’ve really resorted to downloading was when Channel 10 futzed around with Battlestar Galactica screening. I downloaded parts of Season 1- but I bought the DVD’s as soon as they were available. I don’t feel it’s a justification for downloading – I was just furious with Channel 10’s treatment of a great show at the time (and it’s by no means the only one they’ve done it to). I guess that was evident for a number of people though, because they started rushing it out to DVD quite quickly in Australia after season 1.
Nowadays I don’t bother at all – if I really like a show, I’ll wait for it to come out on DVD or Bluray and buy it. In the meantime, if I can record it on Tivo, I will, and watch at my leisure. But I’m happy to support great shows by buying the DVD’s.
I’ve said that upfront to qualify what I have to say otherwise. I do not personally like piracy. I am a strong believer in paying for content and software, and have always been. Downloading BSG was unusual and came with a great deal of guilt, even though I fully intended to buy the DVDs. I don’t take people to task for piracy, but I don’t care to have it discussed or evident in my presence (especially, of course, at work).
It could easily be argued that I’m hypocritical, having done it on the occasion cited above. Fair enough. I’ll wear that. But nonetheless, I own, and purchased honestly, all the music, movies, TV shows, and games that we have in my household.
I download a lot of programs through torrents. Depending if what shows are airing at any certain time, I download around 8-10 new episodes a week (back in October, It was closer to twenty). This is only for current seasons, I also download previous seasons of shows at least once a fortnight.
The shows I download are both shows that are shown on Australian TV, and also some that are not. My every-week download list has included these, during the past few months: Community, 30 Rock, The Office, Modern Family, It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, An Idiot Abroad, Todd Margaret, Keeping Up With The Jonses, The Block, The Force, Beauty and the Geek Australia… The list goes on. There is also shows like Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, and Grand Designs Australia that I am lucky enough to download, as I do not have pay TV.
Why do I download? Mostly convenience. This can be the blame of TV networks, and myself. While networks are notorious for treating a lot of programs like dirt, and giving viewers little respect, I would rather be able to watch shows when I like, how I like. Lately the only shows I do actually watch on TV are the the news, 7pm, and some game shows.
While I say this, I also completely understand your arguement (or position). (Illegally) downloading these shows is basically biting the hand that feeds. Most people who download illegally are hardcore fans of the shows, and the main reason for downloading is to keep up with the slorylines without having to wait 5 months for Aus Tv to show it. But at the same time, by doing that, we reduce ratings and reduce the chance for renewal each year.It’s a hard line.
Our downloading doesn’t reduce ratings unless we have an OzTam ratings box. I would feel bad about downloading if i really was affecting the ratings but until they find a way of gathering info off the TV or Set Top Boxes instead of just the ratings box, i’ll keep on downloading.
We download nearly everything we watch unless it’s local like neighbours or masterchef. I feel that I can’t depend on a network ever since they mucked up Veronica mars.
There are also heaps of good shows that haven’t even made it to Australia. Dexter was about two seasons late.
I started downloading gradually when I wanted to watch Daily Show and Battlestar and there wasnt a local option to see these shows, gradually it turned to the point where I got out of the habit of watching actual TV and just downloaded what I watched. This is more or less the same story for most people my age, FTA doesnt cater for diverse tastes and the internet does.
Yes there are negative effects of more people downloading, but do you think the FTA’s would have started airing US shows within hours of the US airing and offering up multichannels if it wasnt for a need to gain some of the audience lost to downloads? It will force them to be more competitive and eventually they will need to adapt and present something that is as convenient as illegal downloads or they will lose a massive part of their audience.
I do download but that is because I like mainly scifi and scifi dosent rank very well in Australia. You do make a good point about the money flow back. Stargate being one of my favourite shows suffered badly at the networks hands in Australia and I remember downloading low res 20-30mb video files via dialup in the late 90’s to watch it, as the Internet became faster the files improved and more people downloaded it it became more popular but still not consistently shown in Australia making more people download it. so in the end the studio was left with a very popular show that wasn’t making any money so now the have there 2nd spin off series Star Gate Universe that has been made so cheaply is borderline rubbish but has 20,000 down-loaders within a hour of being posted.
I think the main problem was with only 4 TV stations (5 in a pinch) in Australia there was no room for low performing shows, now with digital TV maybe we will see more shows and with more shows come more choice and more people happy to site and watch ad’s again???
Even still I prefer to download my TV from the stations websites so my viewing habits get counted, I would love a OzTAM box so I could represent 20,000 people 😉
Good article. I’ve only ever downloaded on a bit torrent site once and that is when we missed the Survivor Finale a couple of seasons ago.
I am deadset against downloading programs which are yet to air in Australia and never download movies or music unless buying them on iTunes. I blogged about it last year. You can read it here if you wish http://jackmcclane.com/2009/12/15/illegally-downloading/
Jack
I download shows, not just for the convenience of watching it when I feel like it, but also because of the horrendous mess that is HD TV in Australia.
Living in regional Australia I got even worse treatment of HD with at one stage the only shows that we got in HD were Today and Sunrise! Getting something HD in primetime was extremely rare.
The shows are shot and produced in HD, but we get the shows broadcast in glorious blocky MPEG2 576i. What they networks should have done is have their 3 multi channels in SD and reserve the HD channel to show the HD content from all three channels. For example, why show Neighbors at War on GEM which is an SD show when the HD channel could have Top Gear! The government have not helped in this regard either…
Yes, Australian networks have made a moderate attempt to keep up with the US or UK for shows, but when they can have up to a year delay it’s pretty easy to Google a spoiler even when the episode airs within a couple of weeks.
So unless the state of free to air HD improves; I will continue to get my shows in HD and watch them when I want!
I’m not gonna lie, I pirate a LOT of TV shows. Up to 25 ongoing weekly shows and countless old sows that I wish to watch. I know it’s technically ‘wrong’, but ultimately I feel no guilt. Shows that air soon after their American airings ( the final episodes of Lost last season and some of Glee in 2010), I have no problem with watching on TV, live. But shows that I would ordinarily DVR and skip the ad breaks when they air in Aus, I just download and watch weeks in advance, ad break-less.
However, I’ll also continue to support show that I love that air on Aus TV by giving them a rewatch or a shootout on Twitter. Fringe, Community, Parks and Receation, Nikita; arguably ‘cult’ shows that are lucky to get a run on secondary channels in my opinion deserve support and publicity.
If the Australian networks didn’t handle things so poorly – bad programming, weeks, months or seasons behind current, and refuse to show HD shows in HD, there’d not be much reason for people to download TV programs – we’d all be able to watch shows within a week of their initial broadcast.
But that’s not what happens. Even high-rating rubbish such as Two and a Half Men are well behind the ‘States. While the show is appalling, the delay we have here in Australia is worse.
http://www.which.co.uk/news/2010/11/bbc-iplayer-to-go-global-235634/ is the link to news about the BBC iPlayer going global. That would be great as there are a few BBC shows that are delayed here – even Dr Who (probably one of their highest rating shows) – and this means we’ll be able to see them in a decent timeframe, not having to wait until ABC finally gets around to showing them.
With any luck, the global release of iPlayer – as well as the current use of international proxies and bit torrent – will have some sort of effect on our television networks, showing them that we want programs that are current not months or more delayed.
Another thing – if there was a way for people to actually suggest series to Australian networks that they’d watch, that would be great! There’s a lot of SyFy shows that aren’t available down here in Backwardsville because the Australian networks either don’t know about them or don’t care about them, but which are being downloaded by a lot of people.
If the Networks actually took (and listened to) input from their viewers, I’m sure we’d have a better arrangement for everyone involved.
Agreed. Perhaps the networks should invest in finding out which shows are being downloaded by Aussies and actually show them!
There’s been plenty of comments regarding networks and their general attitude towards shows and viewers if a show isn’t rating. Well, really, in this age of multiple channels for a network, instead of loading up these “new” channels with old reruns of shows very few care about or whatever, why NOT do something revolutionary with these shows that aren’t ratings winners and just shift ’em to the other channels instead of just dropping it unannounced? Not only will it keep viewers and fans happy but it’ll also show the benefits of digital TV to any who still haven’t taken up the switch yet. Might even help reduce downloading too.
Oh and whilst you’re at it Australian TV networks, for the love of God, if a show starts at 8:30pm, then START it at 8:30pm, not 8:47pm or whatever. That there is one reason why i’m sure people download shows – how much does it get your goat if you record your favourite show and miss the ending?
That’s my AUD$0.02.
I’m partially reiterating what’s been said before, but the truth appears to be that the television networks have very little (if any) respect for their viewers.
I first discovered Scrubs online 7 or 8 years ago. I had a 512K ADSL connection, and it wasn’t showing on Australian TV at the time, so I downloaded a few episodes. Eventually, it did start showing on Prime (regional channel 7 network) – but it was all over the schedule, out of order, then would go missing for several months or longer.
Eventually, I gave up trying and just downloaded it. Prime (and later Seven, after I moved interstate), continued with the same behaviour right up until Scrubs finished. They did the same with Cougar Town (Bill Lawrence can’t get no love from Seven).
Last year, I decided to give commercial TV another chance. I discovered Chuck on Go! at around 8:30pm on Wednesdays. So, I deliberately chose to make a point of watching it on TV. Unfortunately, Go didn’t feel the same way about me, and after three or four episodes, moved it to 10:30pm, then Midnight, then dropped it off the schedule. To add insult to injury, they replaced it with The Bachelorette.
Between that, and starting programs late to prevent time-shifting (come on, we all know it’s deliberate) I’ve given up on TV. I’ll rent the DVDs, or borrow them from friends, or occasionally download.
Actually just to add. TV in Australia actually wouldn’t be a problem if we where sports yobbos. Sport is well advertised, well covered and on time. they never cancel a sports show without warning or a constant message at the bottom of the replacement program telling you why your game is washed out etc.
after reading the comments on here I have to take a guess and say we are all geeks and not 100% sport only lovers, so Australian TV isnt for us. Sport is the new religion of the masses and it is sent to us by our TV so if you dont like sport (or sex in the city) then its DVD’s or downloads.
In regional Western Australia (ie outside of the Perth broadcast area), WIN and GWN are not yet broadcasting in digital! If I stayed legal and watched the FTA commercial networks on my 120″ projector screen it is in snowy, 4:3 analogue!
Given the analogue broadcast was originally intended to be turned off in 2007, it makes my blood boil that in 2011 the commercial FTA networks in regional WA still are only broadcasting analogue.
I have an email from the General Manager of WIN stating that WIN will commence digital tv broadcasts from the Bunbury transmitter in July 2006 – luckily I am not holding my breath!
Because of this, I refuse to watch ANYTHING on either of these networks, I use Channel BT for 2 reasons:
a) so I can watch 16:9 HD shows instead of the analogue crap provided by WIN and GWN
b) as a form of protest against WIN and GWN for lying to their market for years about the reasons for the lack of digital broadcasting in regional WA.
PS. I pay for Foxtel for sports coverage, but OneHD is pinching some of the sports broadcasts I watched on foxtel, and OneHD is not available in regional WA.
Interestingly none of the comments have been about the actual viewing experience of downloaded vs broadcast shows. Does this mean people are more than happy to watch their TV shows on a small laptop screen, or sitting at a desktop PC, rather than in the comfort of their living room with a much bigger plasma TV? Or are downloaders happy to take the time to constantly carry a hard disk over to a media player attached to said big screen in the living room?
In my experience Ky “most” people who download have some sort of media centre setup which allows them to watch the downloaded content on their big screen TV relatively automagically (or their laptop, iDevice or whatever, of course).
nah, I just watch on my laptop 🙂 Happy to.
I attach my hard drive to my blu ray player and watch my shows on the tv. Or I just watch it in my laptop. I really don’t mind sitting in bed with my laptop watching whatever I have just downloaded. The screen is big enough that I don’t feel like I’m missing out if I don’t watch it on the big tv in the lounge.
Great article. I’m still struggling over this because I don’t believe in downloading music illegally, or watching/buying pirated dvds, but I do watch a quite bit of TV online for various reasons and I’m not sure I can totally justify it. Some, like Friday Night Lights, Nurse Jackie and Off the Map are either shown really late or not at all, so I can kinda justify them. The main ones I always download are Greys and Private Practice because Aus is so far behind, and they are my two favourite shows in the world. I just can’t see why I would bother waiting 6 months when I can access it immediately and watch it when I want, instead of being subject to the TV schedule.
Also, I am pretty PO’d at the TV networks for discontinuing some of my favourite shows without giving them a chance, and leaving other rubbish (Mike and Molly?!!) on eternally, or putting my favourites on ridiculously late, so I feel that if they’re not going to count my TV watching as part of their ratings, then why does it matter what I watch? If my TV was counted in the ratings, I would actually turn it on and leave it on whenever a Grey’s episode was on, JUST to communicate to them that I love it and want it to stay on TV, even if I’d seen the episode 3 mths ago online!
I still watch plenty of normal TV (Masterchef, Biggest Loser, etc) and catch up on FixPlay and Iview, so I don’t feel too bad for them. The other point I haven’t mentioned is that there are a few shows where I have missed a chunk of episodes, and so I need to catch up before I can watch the rest on TV. I don’t have the money to continually buy the DVD sets of everything, so this is a much better option. Also, I would be happy to pay $1 per online episode if I had to.
BBC iplayer for iPad app is already available here. It is a subscription service and costs $90 for an annual subscription. If you have an Apple TV2 you can stream to your TV using AirPlay. Picture quality seems to be better than iview and part of the service is you can download shows and keep them for the life of your subscription.
Kev, yes iPlayer is available NOW but not when article written. However the international version we have access to does not contain all the latest content from the BBC as their new stuff is all tied up in international content deals. When you can pay $90 for access to iPlayer and get it all just like you were in the UK and then open the app on your Smart TV – we’re in a whole different realm…
I don’t download for the same reason as you, Steve, but instead I don’t watch the show on TV unless it’s reliable and on at a good time. By reliable I mean episodes shown regularly and in order. I’ll usually buy the DVD or Bluray or watch it on iview, if ABC. The things that annoy me the most are low quality broadcast, annoying ads and not displaying the season/episode so I know if I’m watching the next installment. I have occasionally pirated when the show is impossible to buy legally; which is usually cancelled, too obscure for Australia or old and never released in a format I can play.