Will IPods bring new TV fans? (AP) Updated: 2005-10-13 11:14 Apple's iPod profoundly changed the way people
experience music. What will it do for television?
The industry was intrigued by Wednesday's announcement that episodes of the
hit ABC shows "Desperate Housewives" and "Lost" will be available for Apple's
new video iPod. Episodes will go on sale for $1.99 on iTunes the day after they
are broadcast.
For ABC and its parent Walt Disney Co., the bet is that the new
technology will bring in more new fans of the programs than will be taken away
from watching them on traditional broadcast television.
The network's affiliates were not told the deal was in the works before
Wednesday, and they're the people most likely to be concerned about its impact.
Now the iPod will join digital video recorders and DVDs as another way of seeing
television programs other than their regularly scheduled times on the ABC
stations.
Leon Long, chairman of ABC's affiliate board and general manager of WLOX-TV
in Biloxi, Miss., wasn't worried.
He said if viewers have the choice of watching "Desperate Housewives" on
their wide-screen television with surround sound or a two-inch iPod screen, they
will almost certainly watch it on TV. The iPod option will likely be attractive
to people who missed an episode and want to keep up with the story, he said.
He noted that two of the three series ABC is offering to iTunes — the new
"Night Stalker" is the other — are serials that require viewers to follow story
lines that play out over several months.
Initially, the downloads might also appeal to techies who want to try out the
new product and might not necessarily be fans of the programs, he said, which
could bring these shows a new audience.
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