Clicking beats Flipping

A new survey by Arbitron, Inc and Edison Media Research shows people, by a slight margin, prefer to surf the web for video instead of watching television.

I’m not surprised and it’s not too much of a stretch to believe the gap will widen.

Needless to say, I came across the story online!

Bottom line? 49% of the people surveyed say given the choice, they’d drop TV in favor of the Internet. 48% said they’d stick with the tube.

With so much video content available on the Internet, your computer or PDA is becoming a one-stop location for just about everything you need. Add devices like the iPad^TM into the mix and you’ll have more and more people choosing to click (or tap) then flip through television channels.

The folks who produce the shows you watch online are of course very aware of this and make their product available through multiple platforms.

The study also points out that people multi-task watching content online, watching shows and posting comments on pages like Facebook^® or Twitter^®.

One thing to keep in mind is the launch this year of 3D HD television. Will that lure more people back to traditional television than online? The new 3D sets are expensive, so are the glasses you’ll need. Thousands for the set and around $150 for just one set of 3D glasses will make for a slow start. But it will take off once prices come down.

Unless of course, online providers provide 3D video. Which they will, sooner than later.

When I started Video Professor 23 years ago, the Internet was more concept than reality and certainly not mainstream. So while I could not have predicted the explosion the Internet has become, at the same time I’m not the least bit surprised.

Another reason why so many of you bought our “Learn the Internet” lessons!

John

John W. Scherer

John is CEO and Founder of Video Professor, Inc.

You can reach him at ceo@videoprofessor.com

Follow John on Twitter: @VidProf

Why I love Twitter!

I’m a recent convert to Twitter but sure glad I am. Everyone has a “proof of performance” story about social media so here’s mine.

David Pogue is the guru of all things tech and his column in the New York Times is a must-read along with his weekly segments on CNBC’s Power Lunch. David is also hugely popular as a speaker at events across the country.

David makes tech fun. One of the first people I opted to follow on Twitter was David. The other day he put out a “talent” call for a segment he was doing about the Apple iPad. With tongue firmly in cheek, I tweeted him that I’d be interested and that I have a “little” experience in television.

He’s such a nice guy and Tweeted back to me almost immediately and so we taped my segments of the video with the result you can watch here. A "Bit Part" granted, but better than no part at all.

Like the ESPN spots I did last summer, it’s great fun and a break from the regular routine. And having your “face” out there in one way or the other is good for business.

All because of Twitter.

So my first real success story in social media. You can have one to. The great thing about social media is one size doesn’t fit all, and your success story will be as unique to you as mine was to me.

By the way, David Pogue used to be a Twitter skeptic. Now he’s a true believer and you can bet he made one out of me!

John
John W. Scherer
John is CEO and Founder of Video Professor, Inc.
You can reach him at ceo@videoprofessor.com
And yes, you can follow him on Twitter! @VidProf

Am I Over-thinking new NFL Over-time Rule?

Call it the “Brett Favre” Rule. Ok, I’ll call it the “Brett Favre” Rule. You can call it what you like on your blog. But I digress.

The NFL has tweaked overtime rules for playoff games. Up until now, winning the coin clip meant a lot. The odds favored the team winning that coin flip. First to score won the game. Cut to losing team holding their heads in disbelief.

That’s no more.

Now both teams have a shot in over-time. Well, sort of. If the team who wins the coin flip then scores a touchdown, the other team goes home. Cut to losing team holding their heads in disbelief.

But…if they only score a field goal, the other team gets a shot to score. Cut to team jumping up and down for joy.

So, touchdown and you go home. Field goal and you hit the field.

Not everyone likes the idea. It’s hard to please everyone all the time. (Google Health Care Reform)

One of my favorite ESPN commentators, Michael Wilbon has no problem with it. He says if you’re on defense, then man up and play defense. If you can hold the other team to a 4th and 2 on let’s say outside the 40, chances are you’ll get your shot. Then get the ball back and score a touchdown. Cut to other team holding their heads in disbelief.

Personally, I’d like to see the rule apply to regular season games. But it’s a start. I believe Brett Favre will like the change, especially if he comes back for another season. We’ll leave that for another blog, likely around training camp time.

John
John W. Scherer
John is CEO and Founder of Video Professor, Inc.
Contact him at ceo@videoprofessor.com
Follow John W. Scherer on Twitter: @VidProf

Web 2.0 status report. We’ve got some catching up to do.

First there was the Internet; then something called Web 2.0 came along. The Internet was basically a collection of web sites. You clicked, you went and you viewed. Web 2.0 is the next generation and provides a full-fledged computing platform that includes blogs, wiki’s, online video, widgets and any number of ways to express yourself.

Some of the newer tutorials we offer are reflective of this new format. Lessons like Learn Online Investing, Learn Online Travel and Learn How to Buy and Sell on eBay® are very popular with our customers.

Web 2.0 is also proving to be an extremely effective political-campaign tool. Campaigns can generate huge amounts of cash through the Internet, political blogs are everywhere and anyone with a computer can sound off for or against the candidates. Bloggers have joined traditional campaigns as pundits where their opinions are valued.

That said, I was a bit surprised to read an article titled "U.S. Lags in Social Media Creation, per Survey" in Adweek® magazine that says we are lagging behind computer users in Asia and South America. While Americans tend to share videos and read blogs, people in these countries tend to be far more active in creating content.

This quote from that article really sums it all up:

"By and large, in the U.S. we're a country of voyeurs", said David Cohen, U.S. director of digital communications at Interpublic Group's Universal McCann, which conducted the study. "We love to watch and consume content created by others, but there's a fairly small group that are doing that creation -- unlike China, which is a country of creators."

According to Adweek, 26 percent of Americans have their own blogs, compared to 70 percent of people in South Korea and China.

Interpublic Group's Universal McCann® advertising agency conducted the survey of 17,000 Internet users over 18 months. Europeans join us as laggards.

In a way, I’m not surprised. Japan has had HDTV for decades, while here in the U.S. it’s only just beginning to come into its own.

Are we simply cautious or are we technophobes? Personally, I think it’s a bit of both. While we launch more and more tutorials that help you maximize the benefits of Web 2.0, so many customers still come to us for the basics.

I encourage you to get out there and create. Picture sharing sites like Flickr.com, video sites like YouTube.com and even new sites like Twitter.com allow you the chance to express yourself or connect to the world like never before. Join a site called Linkedin.com and you’ll be hearing from old friends you haven’t seen in years.

Such expression used to be limited solely to broadcasters and publishers. The great thing about Web 2.0 is it empowers all of us to express our thoughts and opinions, share pictures of the grandkids or catch up with long-lost friends.

So use it, enjoy it and let’s catch up with the rest of the world by creating.

-John
John W. Scherer, CEO & founder, Video Professor, Inc.
You can reach me at ceo@videoprofessor.com