In terms of household possessions, computers are right up there with televisions. Nearly every household in America has at least one, if not both, of these devices. Thanks to the latest advancements in computer technology, watching television on your computer has become more common. Viewing your favorite program on your laptop is convenient, but it could never replace the thrill of watching a movie on a big screen TV with a kicking surround sound system.
Television was invented not so much to provide entertainment, but to sell products — a fact that few people are aware of. Commercials are what drive the industry. Even with commercial free networks like HBO, Showtime or Cinemax you have to pay a subscription fee. Basically, this means nothing is really free on television. With advancements in technology have come video recorders and now DVR recorders. We can buzz by the commercials if we want to. This doesn’t sit too well with advertisers and in many ways they would prefer if you watched television on your computer because then you’ll be forced to watch their commercials and there is nothing you can do about that!
When a network offers you free downloads of their programming, they are also giving you an embedded commercial. These web ads aren’t as long as the spots on television, but there is no way to zap past them. It’s a small price to pay for the benefit of downloading a program to watch whenever you want.
Now with all our handheld gadgets, we’re getting to watch those same free downloads wherever we want. If you don’t mind a small screen you can watch the latest episode of “The Office” in an elevator on a plane or at your neighborhood java joint. Thanks to the latest advancements in download technology, there is really no place where we can’t watch what we want, when we want to.