On-Demand Viewing Poses a Test for Broadcasters

Television viewers who miss their favorite show or want to check out the buzz surrounding a new series are increasingly turning to video-on-demand, whether on television sets, computers or tablets like the iPad. But the growing technology has created a balancing act for broadcast and cable executives weighing how to offer more programming without threatening traditional ad dollars and syndication rights. On cable video-on-demand, network television entertainment had significant growth in the first half of 2010, with a 35 percent increase in transactions over 2009, according to a report by Rentrak OnDemand Essentials, an audience measurement company. There is an “exponential growth in free V.O.D., like the consumer is discovering it for the first time,” said Bill Livek, the chief executive of Rentrak. But with such rapid evolution there are no industry standards about which programs should be available and when.