The Future May Belong to Web and Mobile Video, but TV Will Survive

[Commentary] Television is dead! Long live television! This, the ancient cry of royal succession, is entirely appropriate to herald what's happening right now -- literally before our eyes -- to the medium of television. TV has ruled our lives and lifestyles, our news and entertainment, our politics and (through advertising) our economics since network broadcasting began in 1949. And now its sovereignty is over. "Linear TV has been on an amazing 50-year run, [but] Internet TV is starting to grow," Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said earlier in April, in announcing superb earnings for the streaming TV pioneer. "Clearly over the next 20 years, Internet TV is going to replace linear TV." Far be it for me to disagree. For what are the Digital Content NewFronts but an example of the revolution that is roiling television's half-century hegemony? Well, pssst, buddy, let me let you in on a little secret: The princeling that's replacing television … is television. There are a lot of unknowns. But three things are certain: Consumers want access to great content. Brands want to deeply engage with their consumers. And television will no doubt evolve to survive.

[Randall Rothenberg is president and CEO of Interactive Advertising Bureau]