Digital Native kids shape the TV industry

(The Boston Globe, November 11, 2013)

When kids who have grown up in an on-demand world with Youtube, DVDs and Netflix discover that they cannot rewind or fast-forward a TV show, they are perplexed. Their expectations — that every episode of every show is available anytime — give a glimpse into the future of entertainment, and are already shaping the decisions of media executives who are their grandparents’ ages. Netflix, Amazon, and other streaming video services are competing ferociously for children’s programming. And networks that cater to children are starting to show programs online before they appear on old-fashioned television. But stalwarts like Nickelodeon and the Disney Channel are reacting: They are promoting new phone and tablet apps that give cable and satellite subscribers streamlined access to programs.