When the younger generation thinks of watching TV, it’s usually not cable. One might think of a show or movie on Netflix, Hulu or Disney Plus. Streaming services have become the new normal for how we watch television and there are many changes that this brings.
There are some ways that streaming services have taken the “movie magic” to homes, while also making it a better experience. If the viewer needs to go to the bathroom or grab a snack in the movie theater, they have to sacrifice part of the movie to do it. But with streaming, the viewer can pause it at any time without missing any of the movie. Similar to this, with streaming services, a person doesn’t need to plan their schedule around what time the new episode of their tv show comes on, they can simply watch it whenever they want.
Another thing that streaming services have brought to the table is the diversity in what consumers are exposed to. Streaming services carry a wide variety of movies that people can browse and find more movies they might be interested in rather than the typical cable movies. Many streaming services will recommend new media for the viewer based on what they have watched previously, which can be helpful when looking for new things to watch. Consumers can also find a variety in the release date of movies on streaming services; they can watch new content, or see old movies or shows they may have forgotten about. Streaming services can also provide a larger audience for movies, reaching out globally, instead of just the people who chose to go to a movie theater. People also have access to watch movies from different cultures they wouldn’t have had before.
Most streaming services have made TV shows more bingeable. Before, you had to wait to watch a new episode every week, or you’d be watching reruns. Now, many streaming services like Netflix put out all the episodes in a new season at once, allowing viewers to watch episodes consecutively. This has both positive and negative light, since you can watch all the shows on your schedule, but it can become addictive.
However, streaming services may be having some negative effects as well. So many shows or movies come out specifically on one streaming service, meaning if there’s something a person would like to watch but they don’t own that service, they can’t watch it. Or, they have to own almost every streaming service out there and there’s currently quite a few.
On top of this, many people have stopped going to theaters, leaving the “movie magic” from the theaters behind. Even if movies aren’t coming out directly on streaming, many people will wait until they do instead of going to the theater. Some people think this won’t make movie theaters suffer much, as there are still many moviegoers, but there is no way to be sure.
Streaming services have revolutionized the way movies and tv shows are watched. There’s many good things about them such as more variety, being able to pause anytime or watching wherever the viewer is ready. But they also have some negative sides to them like the amount of streaming services, shows become more consuming, and a decline in movie theater customers. No matter people’s opinion, there’s no denying that people haven’t watched television the same since streaming services arrived.
