BBC new media Director almost gets it

Ashley Highfield:

...future TV will may be unrecognisable from today, defined not just by linear TV channels, packaged and scheduled by television executives, but instead will resemble more of a kaleidoscope, thousands of streams of content, some indistinguishable as actual channels. These streams will mix together broadcasters' content and programmes, and our viewers' contributions. At the simplest level -- audiences will want to organize and re-order content the way they want it. They'll add comments to our programmes,programmes, vote on them and generally mess about with them. But at another level, audiences will want to create these streams of video themselves from scratch, with or without our help. At this end of the spectrum, the traditional 'monologue broadcaster' to 'grateful viewer' relationship will break down, and traditional advertising and subscription models will no longer be viable.



This is so close, but he is still talking about streams. If he can start thinking 'files' not 'streams' he will have the right model maped out.



TiVo's and iPods are hardware devices that customers willingly buy to turn streams into files. If they could get the files directly the whole enterprise is far simpler and more attractive.