Shift Happens

May 22nd, 2011

Jean-Louis Gassée:

The ascent of Netflix signals a broader shift in the way we consume television. For example, “news” programs aren’t really news in that they aren’t fresh, they’re already reheated when we watch them at 6 or 11. Many TV programs, from John Stewarts’s Daily Show to PBS Nightly News, can be watched on a PC when we — not they — are available. Tomorrow, we’ll get all of them (minus NBC, perhaps) on Netflix or one of its competitors.

The chart from Silicon Alley Insider comparing Netflix’s subscriber base and growth to cable operators says it all.