Here They Come!

Warner Brothers has announced it is spending $3 million to develop its own original programming for broadcast on the internet.

This represents a shift from its prior strategy of having advertisers fund the cost of production. The advertisers were wanting some input into the content creation, since it was occurring on their dime, and Warner Brothers felt they were better suited developing content without the input.

How interesting that broadcast television is dominated by unscripted "reality" programming, and now the internet - which has been the bastion of home-grown content like Miss Teen South Carolina bemoaning the lack of maps in "the Iraq" - is now attracting the professional content.

Of course, the entry of the entertainment industry into the internet as a broadcast channel was inevitable. Just as inevitable as corporate America's adoption of the technology as a significant, scalable,and cost effective communications tool.