Initially I was a little suspicious of the idea of 18 Doughty Street. I'm not convinced that the minor channels on digital television get many viewers and without a decent viewer base such an interactive concept would quickly fall by the wayside. Equally, my monitor is busy and unlike with a TV I'm not used to leaving video running on it while I do other stuff. However, a couple of things have convinced me it is a brilliant idea:
1) Tim Montgomerie's interview with Channel 4. I know Tim does quite a few media appearances these days but even so he did shockingly well. If you didn't know before hand would you have thought he was from the new minority station and Krishnan Guru Murthy a major network anchor?
Guru Murthy's self satisfied assumption that regulation made his network and the BBC 'impartial' was frustrating. Tim's insistence that he preferred to be open about his bias and balance it through other points of view was refreshing. It now seems likely that the channel itself will be equally refreshing.
2) The idea of video podcasting it. I have a fast internet connection and a video iPod. So do a growing number of people. I was sceptical at the idea that I would have the video window running on my computer for a few hours at a time but if I can store it and then watch it the following day on the move then it would be a great way to spend time on the train etc.
One additional idea. I have Microsoft Windows Media Center Edition and an XBox 360 (apologies for the amount of technology I'm referencing in this post). When the XBox 360 is connected to a media center PC it has an 'Online Spotlight' section which allows me to watch BBC or Reuters internet news services on my TV through my computer as well as various other sites. This obviously requires some kind of set up with Microsoft but it is something they're really pushing at the moment so I'd think they would be amenable. This would allow me to watch it on my regular TV from day one unlike the promised internet TV services which are still a while away. It might be another useful method of getting 18 Doughty Street's content out there.
Good luck to all those involved and I look forward to watching.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
You don't need any posh Micro$oft gadgery, just a bog standard PC with an SVideo cable (about a tenner from Dixons). I watch the online edition of Question Time all the time with my laptop!
Post a Comment