Watch What We Say
By Jared Fields
June 8, 2006
BoxOfficeProphets.com

Just what have you two been doing in that phone booth?
Starting next month NBC will offer ten original, two-minute-long webisodes of The Office. This won't be the first time they have used the Web to promote the show, as the pilot episode was streaming on MySpace a week before it premiered, but it will be the first time they have created original content specifically for the online audience. Possibly due to their lack of ratings, NBC is embracing the Web as much or more than other networks. They were the first network to offer their full newscast, as opposed to just clips, online. Starting early last November viewers who missed NBC Nightly News could view the show, albeit ad-supported, on the MSNBC Web site.

The partnership with Microsoft was also used, unfortunately without success, to attract viewers to Heist. The week before it debuted, they had a 15-minute preview on MSN Video, which also had the first two episodes a week after they aired. There are also future plans to air online the full sketches of the show-within-a-show of next season's 30 Rock. Promoting current and upcoming shows isn't the only use they have found for online broadcasting. When Celebrity Cooking Showdown tanked, they moved the final two installments to their Web site before deciding to also air them in the traditional method during the scheduling wasteland that is Saturday.

While they may be at the forefront, NBC is hardly alone in exploring the possibilities of the Web in relation to programming. Most reality shows have some related content on Web sites, usually in the form of interviews with people eliminated. Early last month, CBS moved most of theirs to a section dubbed Innertube, which also has clips and behind-the-scenes features of scripted shows. It will also be home to some original content, including Inturn. Inturn will follow the search for a new cast member on As the World Turns.

Some networks have found other uses, or reasons to use, the Web. When The WB decided to edit the first episode of The Bedford Diaries to avoid potential FCC fines, they put the uncut version on the show's Web site a week before the edited version aired. Others have used it for some extra content, notably episode commentary. The first time this was used that I know of was the lamentably short-lived series Wonderfalls. To try and lure viewers to watch a repeat of the first episode, the official Web site had a commentary track people could listen to while they watched. They made the mistakes of having it embedded, not downloadable, and with no pauses for ad breaks. Both led to the near necessity to record the show, then skip the ads, which is one reason I think episode commentaries aren't more common. Rob Thomas, unhappy with the lack of extras on the Veronica Mars Season One dvd set, recorded a commentary track for the pilot episode, and offered it for download on his Web site.

This use of the Internet isn't limited to networks in the United States. The BBC offered commentary for an episode of the new Doctor Who series titled The Christmas Invasion. They also had a special message on the BBC Web site to promote the episode while it was airing. They have also premiered shows online. In a move I doubt any stateside network will follow, they not only made the pilot of The IT Crowd available for download the week before it aired, but followed suit with the remaining episodes as well.

The closest any American network has come is ABC. Two of the most popular shows it broadcasts, Lost and Desperate Housewives, are available in a streaming, ad-supported format the day after they air. In addition to that, you can can download those and other shows through iTunes for a fee. It was the next logical step for Apple after their success selling music. Nothing happens on the Web without Google eventually getting involved, and this is no exception. Not only do they offer some classic shows, as does AOL's In2TV, and current CBS shows, but they also have sports offerings such as NBA and AFL games. One drawback to the sporting events is that they cost about double the non-sports offerings.

Never one to pass up a chance to make money, Rupert Murdoch has started selling episodes of 24 on MySpace, which he bought nearly a year ago. Previously the Web site had been used to offer an advance episode of Kitchen Confidential. It is unknown what impact this had on the viewership of that episode, as the series was canceled before it was set to air.

Another interesting case is that of TNA Wrestling. Wanting to keep as much of their audience as possible while between TV deals, they offered their show Impact on the company's Web site. Last month also saw the debut of Global Impact on YouTube. There was more interest than anticipated, and the resulting crash of YouTube resulted in a move to the TNA Web site. TNA has also used the Web as a way to make it up to fans when they run into technical problems. The live feed of May's Sacrifice pay-per-view froze, resulting in fans missing most of a match, including the end. In an attempt to make this up to fans who had purchased the event, the part of the match that they had missed was made available online.