Internet downloads could see the end of television by 2012
One of the founding fathers of the internet has predicted the world wide web will spell the end of television in the coming years.
Vince Cerf, who helped to build the internet while working as a researcher in America, said that TV was approaching its 'iPod moment.'
In the same way that people now download music onto their iPod, he said that viewers would soon be downloading their favourite programmes onto their computers.
Cerf, who is now the vice-president of Google, said: "Around 85 per cent of all video we watch is pre-recorded, so you can set your system to download it all the time.
"You're still going to need live broadcasts for certain things - like news, sporting events and emergencies.
"But increasingly it is going to be almost like the iPod, where you download content to look at later."
TV on demand is not yet a mainstream activity in the UK, but the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 have all invested vast sums of money in technology, which enables viewers to watch their favourite shows on their computers.
But some critics, including some internet service providers, have warned that the web will collapse under the strain of millions of people downloading programmes at the same time.
Over the next four years, it is thought that the number of videos watched over the internet will quadruple, with people moving from short clips to hour-long programmes.
Broadband companies claim that the service will cause 'traffic jams,' which will cost millions of pounds to sort out and that customers will ultimately end up paying the bill.
But Mr Cerf dismissed the warnings as 'scare tactics,' saying that critics had predicted 20 years ago that the net would collapse when people all around the world started to use it.
He added: "In the intervening 30 years it's increased a million times over... We're far from exhausting the capacity.
"It's an understandable worry when they see huge amounts of information being moved around online."
Setting out his vision for the future of the internet, he said he wanted it to reach as many people as possible.
"I want more internet, every one of the six billion people on the planet must be able to connect to the internet - I think they will add things to it that will really benefit us."
Vince Cerf, who helped to build the internet while working as a researcher in America, said that TV was approaching its 'iPod moment.'
In the same way that people now download music onto their iPod, he said that viewers would soon be downloading their favourite programmes onto their computers.
Cerf, who is now the vice-president of Google, said: "Around 85 per cent of all video we watch is pre-recorded, so you can set your system to download it all the time.
"You're still going to need live broadcasts for certain things - like news, sporting events and emergencies.
"But increasingly it is going to be almost like the iPod, where you download content to look at later."
TV on demand is not yet a mainstream activity in the UK, but the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 have all invested vast sums of money in technology, which enables viewers to watch their favourite shows on their computers.
But some critics, including some internet service providers, have warned that the web will collapse under the strain of millions of people downloading programmes at the same time.
Over the next four years, it is thought that the number of videos watched over the internet will quadruple, with people moving from short clips to hour-long programmes.
Broadband companies claim that the service will cause 'traffic jams,' which will cost millions of pounds to sort out and that customers will ultimately end up paying the bill.
But Mr Cerf dismissed the warnings as 'scare tactics,' saying that critics had predicted 20 years ago that the net would collapse when people all around the world started to use it.
He added: "In the intervening 30 years it's increased a million times over... We're far from exhausting the capacity.
"It's an understandable worry when they see huge amounts of information being moved around online."
Setting out his vision for the future of the internet, he said he wanted it to reach as many people as possible.
"I want more internet, every one of the six billion people on the planet must be able to connect to the internet - I think they will add things to it that will really benefit us."
- added October 07, 2008
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Commercial internet is already starting, so many damn advertisements, I can only see this as inevitable.
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I'm doing this now. Why watch anything on someone else watch when I can do it on my dime and when i want to not when I"m dictated to?
I helped a friend bring his extra computer into the living room so he could use a download site to watch whatever tv programs he wanted, he hasn't gone to the movies since.
I'm a movie guy and NOTHING is better then IMAX so for me that's going a little far but it's still close to how I am as well. It's not coming, it's here.
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- raimonnemar
- 9 months ago
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