Watching television has been a common form of entertainment for decades and continues to evolve. From a television with buttons on its face to a remote with every platform imaginable at our fingertips, the industry continues to thrive. When modern television was first developed in the mid-20th century, it featured black-and-white images and was often encased in big, boxy sets.
“When I was a teenager in the mid-80s, we had a few channels to choose from, and you watched whatever was on. If you missed your show, you missed it — there was no rewinding, no ‘catch up later.’ We’d actually plan our week around TV,” said Erica Song, a mother of two teenage children. “It was so different.”
Kids and teenagers today, who mostly grew up watching modern television and using streaming platforms, believe modern technology has made it easier to watch what they want.
“I think it’s easier for kids to watch shows now, because you don’t have to watch them at a certain time when they’re playing,” said Aria Poeta, a 10-year-old who has grown up watching television on streaming platforms.
What kids today don’t realize is that sometimes newer doesn’t mean easier or better. While modern televisions have more functions to navigate, learning how to use them can be more difficult.
“The quality of television is overall better — some of the writing and production I see on streaming shows is terrific, and just as good as movie theater productions. But it’s also way more complicated to navigate. I sometimes spend 20 minutes just deciding what to watch and where to find it,” Song said.
Modern television has also introduced a new problem: cost. According to Rachel Zizmor, is a sophomore at Carlmont High School, her family currently has three streaming services, but had to cancel their subscription to Disney+.
“We really like Disney movies, but it’s just when they bought a bunch of other companies like Hulu and now ESPN. Everything is just so much more expensive. Having both Netflix and Disney+ costs way too much money,” Zizmor said.
Compared to the price of cable TV and buying individual DVDs, people think that they are saving money. In 2011, a Netflix subscription only cost $8 a month, but the price has since soared due to inflation.
“My guess is that most people psychologically feel like they are saving money by only paying for streaming, because each service includes smaller charges that are more spread out. But even with just streaming, most families will still be paying for internet services, which is expensive,” Song said.
Keeping up with the shows you like and want to watch isn’t the cheapest hobby. According to Song, this has drastically changed through the use of modern streaming services.
“Back with cable TV, everything was in one place. Now the content is scattered all over, and following your favorite shows can get expensive,” Song said. “Once you add everything up, it’s really not cheaper than cable TV was. Just different.”
Television production companies have started producing exclusive shows available only on their platforms so that if you want to watch that show, you have to pay for the streaming service.
“It definitely raises the price because the need to want to watch that show or the want to watch that show encourages people to get those streaming services,” Zizmor said.
Today, many families subscribe to multiple streaming services and platforms to watch the shows they want, sometimes unintentionally paying for them.
“When a show you love is exclusive to one platform, you have no choice but to subscribe to that platform if you want to watch it. It’s a smart business strategy, but it means you end up with more subscriptions than you planned on,” Song said. “We sometimes buy a service specifically to watch a show with the intention to cancel the service after the show. Months later, I realize that we haven’t used that service since, but are still paying for it.”
Many people have found that they end up subscribing for another streaming service when one stops playing a show they are watching, creating additional costs.
“The shows that we want to watch are on many different services,” Song said. “So, the total cost is probably not that different. The difference is I can have more options to choose from.”
Regardless, the current price of streaming services is worth it for many people, because for them, ease is more important.
“Currently, not all the prices of streaming services have gone so high up that we would go back to cable and DVDs,” Zizmor said. “Streaming services are a lot easier because you know everything is at the tips of your fingers. You don’t even have to go anywhere.”
As the streaming process has simplified, DVDs have become increasingly rare. According to Zizmor, many people find streaming services easier because you don’t have to go to a store or library to rent one.
“The best thing about streaming is you don’t really have to go looking for a DVD. You can just search what you’re looking for in there, or you can pick a genre of what you want to watch,” Poeta said.
Nevertheless, some people still prefer the physicality of a DVD, since modern television relies on the internet and Wi-Fi to play movies and shows.
“I really like DVDs. DVDs are great, especially you can use them with no Wi-Fi. All you need is a TV, a DVD player, and a DVD; so it’s really easy to use, and it’s also a physical thing, which is nice,” Zizmor said.
As television advances, it is becoming increasingly different from what it used to be, and many have found that there are pros and cons with both.
“We traded the simplicity of one-stop shopping with cable TV for streaming choices, and there are days when I miss the simplicity,” Song said. “It’s honestly a little mind-blowing how different it is now compared to when I was young.”
