Engineering Web Development Innovations

ClickZ writer, Jeremy Lockhorn, announced the impending death of TV spots in a recent column. He cites the growth of online video and the functionalities of DVR and TIVO to skip past ads as two of the driving forces behind this looming demise. But will advertising in video go away entirely? Probably not, but it may take a new Web development to re-invent the TV spot for the online environment.

Web Developments & Clogging Internet Arteries

There's some discussion on the Web that TV execs and marketers will move all their programming and advertising spots from the boob tube up to the Internet. The idea suggests that people will get their television viewing entirely from the Internet. Associated Press writer, Peter Svensson, investigated how Internet service providers (ISP) would be able to handle this kind of Web development.

Svensson discovered that much like phone companies used to do, ISPs have over-sold the amount of bandwidth that they can offer. Apparently, ISPs sell about 30 times more bandwidth than would be possible for the total number of users to be on the Internet at one time. This isn't bad. Generally every subscribed user isn't online simultaneously. But a massive increase in television-style viewing over the Internet would be more than telecoms could currently support.

Short and Sweet Online Video

You're probably already saying that nobody goes to the Internet to watch hours of shows. Internet video is about short clips and not feature length movies. So the challenge for advertisers is to create clips that catch attention and that users will want to see because it's so easy for users to not view ads. The online video trend is growing, and Lockhorn mentions that big names like The New York Times are getting into the act. No doubt that demands on bandwidth will increase, but TV programmers and advertisers are going to have to come up with a new idea to make their shows and ads works for the Web.

College Associate's Degree in Web Dev

So what's the answer? Probably another web development coupled with advertiser innovation. Who'll do it? Could be you. A college associate's degree in Web development can get you started in usually about two years. If you enjoy working with the Web, a college associate's degree will help you to hone those skills. A college bachelor's degree is probably ideal, but an associate's degree would help you start earning sooner and let you find out if Web development is the right career for you. Either way, education is crucial to getting into this field, and a new online video invention could be your ticket to great success.

Sources
"TV Spots Are Dead." Jeremy Lockhorn
"Will video clips kill the Internet star?" Peter Svensson

About the Author
James Tolles is a freelance writer and holds two B.A. degrees, one in Creative Writing and the other in History.