Online Videos

"Everyone knows most online videos are watched at work. Right?

No, they're not, says CBS. The broadcaster says its online viewership peaks twice each night -- once at 7pm on the east coast, and then again three hours later, when west coast viewers get home.Veoh has told us a similar story, which may mean that while most video is watched during the day, certain types of video -- presumably longer clips or full shows -- are not.

For CBS, viewing for individual shows online tends to peak right before a new episode airs, as fans catch up on ones they've missed. The downside: The more people watch at night, the more likely they are to cut back on honest-to-goodness prime time television, which is much more valuable for the network. CBS execs say that's inevitable, but that it hasn't yet affected ratings."




"Disney is going to raid the TV archives, a move that may allow viewers to watch 50s-era series like "Zorro" and "Davy Crockett" via ad-supported streams or by paid downloads through Apple's iTunes, CEO Bob Iger said at Disney's annual meeting.

Iger didn't actually say which shows from the ABC/Disney library would make a digital comeback, but it's clear he's eyeing the free money discovered by CBS and NBC, both of which have been pleasantly surprised at the online popularity of oldies like "The A-Team" and "Star Trek." Vintage shows cost the networks nothing to repurpose and they can be packed with ads."