Google TV Doesn’t Need No Stinkin’ Networks
Written by Michael Rohde Saturday, 06 November 2010 00:00
A common negative sentiment in the majority of Google TV reviews is that several major network broadcasters are currently blocking Google TV from showing their content. To which many would say, “We don’t need no stinkin’ network TV.”
Many people flock to the internet for the main purpose of getting away from the drivel that’s on network TV. There are very few shows on network TV right now that are so good that you just have to watch it live. In fact, I can’t think of any show right now on network TV that I care about in the least bit. Maybe the last show with that kind of hold on me and my wife was Lost. And that’s show is gone.
Even some of the better sitcoms, like Modern Family, I am more than happy to wait for it on DVD or instant streaming from Netflix. Or, if we were really desperate to watch, we’d plunk down a couple bucks to watch it via Amazon On Demand. Both the Netflix and AOD options are fully functional on Google TV; with two options to access said content: either through the pre-loaded app or the respective websites. So, with many reviewers complaining about blocked content, it goes to show how little they understand the technology.
Sure, watching streaming video via the networks might be free, but you’re paying for it by watching the commercials. And these aren’t commercials you can fast forward and skip right over. These commercials lock up your system so you are forced to watch. With paid subscriptions to Netflix or paying a la carte via AOD, there are no commercials, and you pay much less money per month than you would if you paid a cable TV bill. So again I say, “We don’t need no stinkin’ network TV.” Or for that matter, “We don’t need no stinkin’ cable TV bill.”
Of YouTube, Lego Pirates and Google TV
So, what’s there to watch if you don’t have the networks and you don’t want to pay Netflix or AOD? There’s YouTube. Wonderful YouTube. And that’s coming from a guy who never got on the bandwagon of watching cute kittens do silly things with piano keys, or watching videos of dogs on skateboards or any other type of crap. There’s a ton of good, relevant content on YouTube that’s only a search away. And Google TV pinpoints that content for you.
For example, my wife was asking me, “What is all this talk about Kinect?” So, I searched for “Kinect” on Google TV and immediately I had access to several Kinect demos that are posted on YouTube. All in HD. All played instantly. And suddenly my kids were mimicking the kids on the screen dodging left and right. I thought to myself, this is the power of Google TV. Sure, you could do that on a laptop as well, but then we’d all have to gather around the laptop. This way, displaying it on the TV, everyone in the room had a good view.
There’s also what I now call the “Lego Pirate” syndrome. Do you have any idea how many Lego Pirate videos are on YouTube? And do you know that my son wants to watch all of them? Repeatedly. Every day. For the past week, my three-year old asks me, “Dad, can we finish the Lego Pirate video now?” It’s all in good fun, I don’t mind playing them for him, and some of them are actually very good. But after you watch the third Lego Pirate video, the adults in the room start to wonder what else is out there. But, if you’re looking to entertain the pre-school set, there is no shortage of free YouTube content out there. And, of course, it’s not just Lego Pirates. There’s Lego Star Wars, Lego Prince of Persia, Lego this and Lego that. Long live Legos...
My main point is, for all the naysayers out there stating that Google TV is half-baked and that a major drawback is no network TV, all I have to say to them is: live network TV is so last century. And Google TV is not half-baked, it’s just missing the frosting on a delicious, fully-baked cake. When the apps become available in early 2011, that won’t finish baking the cake, it will simply be the frosting on the cake.
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