Future TV: appealing commercials, avatars, gesture-controlled

By Dick Pelletier

      

    Since the creation of moving pictures and the advertising market it presented, television has been a source of profits, controlled originally by three broadcast networks. In 1975, the number one show, All in the Family, captured 30 percent of homes; and cable, just beginning to appear in larger cities, served only as new technology that improved reception.

    Today, the numbers are shrinking. 2009's top-rated American Idol appeared in only 15% of households; three broadcast networks have grown to six, and cable and satellite carriers now deliver over 500 channels. Digital video recorders make it easy to watch programs anytime – and even skip commercials.

    For years, traditional broadcasting has delivered tens of millions of eyeballs to hungry advertisers, but no longer able to exploit a broad captive audience, the industry must now invent a new strategy.

    Google to the rescue! This forward-thinking company has developed software that identifies customer interest and displays only relevant commercials. This concept, combined with product placements – items digitally inserted into the actual story line of the program – represents major changes in how future advertisers will reach their audience.

    We might have to watch Desperate Housewives' Terri Hatcher guzzle down a Pepsi, but on the bright side, this could one day spell the end of those annoying "commercial breaks," plus, the new ads will be more compelling as they will only include products we have shown a strong interest in.

    How we watch TV is undergoing changes too. In 1965, yours truly purchased his first color TV; a 15-inch solid wood console. This beautiful furniture piece attracted neighbors and friends who gathered around to stare at the magical pictures with flesh-like tones.

    Today, most people view TV on large, 32-to-60" flat-panel LCD display screens. But tomorrow's TVs will boast some amazing improvements. Touch screens are so yesterday, and remote controls are definitely last century. In the future, a wave of the hand turns the TV on, and finger wiggling changes channels and volume. It's called 3D gesture recognition, and though it's not in stores yet, manufacturers are aiming for Christmas 2010.

    And Panasonic and Britain's Sky Network will release 3D programming with special compatible TVs in 2010. Initially, those clumsy glasses will be necessary, but as the technology advances, distinctive screens will produce razor-sharp pictures without need for 3D-glasses.

    By 2015, lifelike avatars that speak perfect "human" and resemble a favorite celebrity will appear on our screens to answer questions, negotiate Internet transactions, and help us understand our electronic maize. By 2020, holographic technology will allow the avatars to jump off the screen and join us in the room.

    Also, by 2020, nano-size electronics inside "active contact lenses" will display TV, Internet, and phone calls directly onto the retina, creating high-resolution pictures that seem to hover in the air. And by mid-2020s, "neuro-bots" will create simulated adventures in our brain that are indiscernible from reality.

    At this point, we can download a program like Star Trek Holodeck and dive into action. Any scene our mind can envision would seem totally real: we could relive when we first met our mate, or conjure up any other exciting adventure.

    Welcome to this most amazing "magical" TV future.

This article appeared in various print publications and on-line blogs. Comments always welcome.