Research Questions (TV)

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BASIC
-What is web2.0? Why web2.0? What is Internet TV?
-What is the difference between the current Internet and Web2.0?
-There are six kinds of TV: Internet TV, P2PTV, HDTV, IPTV, steaming video, Cellphone TV.[1]

English version:
http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html?page=1
Chinese version:
http://www.enet.com.cn/article/2005/1122/A20051122474593.shtml

www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.09/tv.html


Current situation

please refer to http://en.wikipedia.org to find out what you are not clear about.
1. What is the current technology in TV industry?
Starting in the 1990s, modern television sets diverged into three different trends:
--standalone TV sets;
--integrated systems with DVD players and/or VHS VCR capabilities built into the TV set itself (mostly for small size TVs with up to 21" screen, the main idea is to have a complete portable system);
--component systems with separate big-screen video monitor, tuner, audio system which the owner connects the pieces together as a high-end home theater system. This approach appeals to videophiles who prefer components that can be upgraded separately.

Current Technology:
Terrestrial television (also known as over-the-air, OTA or Broadcast TV)
Cable Television (CATV)
Digital TV (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_television)
All digital TV variants can carry both standard-definition television (SDTV) and High-definition television (HDTV). Other format: eg. Ultra High Definition Video (UHDV)
DTT
Interactive television
eg. VOA (video-on-demand), Enhanced TV (ETV)
Satellite television
Flicker-free

Internet television (Vlogging, Vodcasting, Vodcatching and the Newtube.) IPTV is a part of
Web TV

Important aspects of TV:
1.video monitors
2. connection to computer cases and peripherals

Impacts of new innovation:
PVR (Personal Video Recorder) or DVR (digital video recorder)

2. When TV programs are produced, how can they be posted to public? How does the workflow works for broadcasting the films to the public?
Getting TV programming shown to the public can happen in many different ways. After production the next step is to market and deliver the product to whatever markets are open to using it. This typically happens on two levels:

1. Original Run or First Run - a producer creates a program of one or multiple episodes and shows it on a station or network which has either paid for the production itself or to which a license has been granted by the producers to do the same.

2. Syndication - this is the terminology rather broadly used to describe secondary programming usages (beyond original run). It includes secondary runs in the country of first issue, but also international usage which may or may not be managed by the originating producer. In many cases other companies, TV stations or individuals are engaged to do the syndication work, in other words to sell the product into the markets they are allowed to sell into by contract from the copyright holders, in most cases the producers.

In most countries, the first wave occurs primarily on free-to-air (FTA) television, while the second wave happens on subscription TV and in other countries. In the U.S. however, the first wave occurs on the FTA networks and subscription services, and the second wave travels via all means of distribution.
First run programming is increasing on subscription services outside the U.S., but few domestically produced programs are syndicated on domestic FTA elsewhere. This practice is increasing however, generally on digital only FTA channels, or with subscriber-only first run material appearing on FTA.

Unlike the U.S., repeat FTA screenings of a FTA network program almost only occur only on that network. Also, affiliates rarely buy or produce non-network programming that isn't intensely local.


Television production

What follows is the standard procedure for shows on network television in the United States.

Someone (called the show "creator") comes up with the idea for a new television series. This consists of the concept, the characters, usually some crew, and sometimes some big-name actors.

They "pitch" it to the various television networks, hoping to find one that's interested. If a network is interested, they will "order" a pilot (a prototype first episode of the series).

To create the pilot, the structure and team of the whole series needs to be put together. If the network likes the pilot, they will "pick up" the show for their next season (UK: series). Sometimes they'll save it for "midseason" or request re-writes and further review (known in the industry as "Development hell"). And other times they'll pass entirely, leaving the show's creator forced to "shop it around"' to other networks. Many shows never make it past the pilot stage.

If the show is picked up, a "run" of episodes is ordered. Usually only 13 episodes are ordered at first, although a series will typically last for at least 22 episodes (the last nine episodes sometimes being known as the "back nine", borrowing a term from golf).

The show hires a "stable" of writers, who usually work in parallel: the first writer works on the first episode, the second on the second episode, and so forth. When all of the writers have been used, the assignment of episodes continues starting with the first writer again. On other shows, however, the writers work as a team. Sometimes they will develop story ideas individually, and pitch them to the show's creator, who then folds them together into a script and rewrites them.

The executive producer, often the show's creator, is in charge of running the show. They pick crew and cast (subject to approval by the network), approve and often write series plots, and sometimes write and direct major episodes. A whole host of other producers of various names work under him or her, to make sure the show is always running smoothly.

Once the script for a show is written, a director is found for the episodes. The director's job is to turn the words of the script into film. They decide how scenes should be "staged" and where the cameras should be placed; they also often coach the actors, including any guest stars who may be in the particular episode. On television shows, directors are often interchangeable, mainly serving the dictates of the writer.

A director of photography takes care of making the show look good, doing things with lighting and so on.

Finally, an editor cuts the various pieces of film together, adds the musical score, and assembles the completed show.

The show is then turned over to the network, which sends it out to its affiliates, which air it in the specified timeslot. If the Nielsen Ratings are good, the show is kept alive as long as possible. If not, the show is usually cancelled. The show's creators are then left to shop around remaining episodes, and the possibility of future episodes, to other networks. On especially successful series, the producers sometimes call a halt to a series on their own like The Cosby Show and end it with a concluding episode which sometimes is a big production called a series finale.

If the show is popular or lucrative, and a number of episodes (usually 100 episodes or more) are made, it goes into syndication where broadcast rights are then resold.


What are the stakeholders? Who are the key players of “normal TV”?
Television network http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_network
audiences