Inexpensive broadband access has unchained viewers from the TV, and now television executives and entrepreneurs are feverishly experimenting to figure out how “TV” will change as a result. That’s the primary message of Lots of Little Screens: TV is Changing Shape, and article by Denise Caruso in today’s New York Times.

Interesting message, but short-sighted. Yes, Internet video will affect television. But what about the rest of the Internet experience? Video is a “content type,” like words or data or audio or pictures. Now that video is a realistic “content type” for the average Internet user, the implications are far broader than entertainment.

The Internet is used for communication, entertainment, advertising, and commerce. While the press focuses on entertainment, there’s a ton of exciting innovation happening in other fields as well. In five years, we’ll look back and think how myopic it was to imagine that online video was just a bunch of little TV screens.

Filed under: Uncategorized