The evolution of how people consume media as a result of torrent sites and what it means for the future.

The evolution of how people consume media as a result of torrent sites and what it means for the future.

 

What.cd, Broadcast The Net and Pass The Popcorn are known as the holy trinity of torrent sites. With them, any album, television show or film can be downloaded almost instantly in any format. Not only do these torrent sites have the media as soon as it is publically available, they frequently have the content far earlier than the public at large does as releases online frequently precede official public release dates.

Part of the reason why these sites have been able to flourish so much is that all the supplemental components have progressed in unison as well. High definition televisions are dirt cheap, ditto for harddrive space and media players. One can spend less than $1000 dollars buying a massive high definition television, a media device capable of consuming any video, and more harddrive space than one could ever use. Taken together, users now have the ability to have any media they want in the highest quality not only for free, but conveniently accessible.

There is no longer any need for music stores, movie rental services/stores, cable packages, book stores etc. A larger catalogue than what the aforementioned services could ever provide is available in a more convenient and better quality way online… and for free.

Although this is not as evident for ebooks, almost any book that has been released on a digital format is also available online, thus rendering most physical bookstores to be useless.

Torrents have proven to be a better model for consuming media in almost all regards. It is not a question of pirates not wanting to pay. There is no comparable system that offers nearly the same convenience or quality that one could possible pay for. However, there is one area that torrents cannot sufficiently handle and this will become the final frontier of media.

Sporting events needs to be viewed live. There are no exceptions and ways to get around this. Presently, there are four options as to how one can watch sports. Through cable TV packages, through NHL Gamecentre, NBA League Pass etc type packages, streaming the games online through the internet or downloading a torrent of the game after it happens. In terms of the free options, they are both subpar. As stated previously, nobody wants to watch a game that’s already happened. Regarding the streams, they are not in nearly high enough quality to watch on a television screen and to enjoy with peers.

Although I have no idea what the future holds for this media, I know that sports are the last pillar that the cable giants are holding onto to retain their consumers.  However, unless the legal models change to be more accommodating, they will lose out to whatever future illegal model is developed.

Right now, the options are purchasing an entire cable package in addition to all of the sporting channels. The cons to this are that one is paying an inordinate amount of money for a product that they don’t need (the entire cable package other than the sports). Additionally, in this model, most fans have only access to their home team games and lack the option of following teams from other cities.

The other option is purchasing a payperview service such as gamecentre or league pass. This can be done either in supplement or as a replacement to a cable package. If it is done as a replacement for a cable package, then one has to watch it via the internet. This is problematic because they need a dedicated device to stream the games, and the media is low quality. To make matters worse, one does not have any access (whatsoever) to watching their home team.

If a fan decides they want to purchase these payperview services in supplement to their cable package, they will be spending a significant amount of money on their cable bill. This is not to say that this is good or bad or worth it or not worth it. The thing most relevant is that the majority of users will decide that the service is not worth the cost and will find other means to watch these games.

Right now, cable companies must come up with a better and cheaper solution for sports fans to watch their games of choice. If they don’t, the internet community will devise a more convenient and superior free way for fans to watch these games.