The Internet has become a constant presence in our lives—and why wouldn’t it be? It becomes easier to access any type of media on any platform that you want, and it can be accessed by nearly everything that we use for communication today. This has put the previous giants in media (TV and radio) in a somewhat sticky spot.
Flexible and adapting, the Internet can be used for a variety of purposes: marketing on SiriusXM and other streaming services, broadcasting live streams of important events, and even as a quick and easy consultation for current trends and happenings. With all of these traditionally having been filled by radio and TV, it may sound like their times are nearing an end.
However, one of the very tools that help the Internet spread and exist is also the one that’s keeping radio and TV from disappearing: the smartphone.
The design of our handheld devices
One of the biggest reasons mobile devices are keeping radio and TV alive is the redundancy that’s built into the mobile system. While our smartphones are normally used to access the Internet and read online content, they often carry components or features that can interface with our much earlier ways of broadcasting: radio and satellite waves.
This merger between old and new technology is a constant in any smartphone. Since there’s no high cost to adding these components and no big reason to remove them, they’ve always been a good addition in all and future smartphone units. This is normally meant as a redundancy feature in case of emergencies and the like but can be accessed without that requirement.
The entire world is not the Internet
It’s easy to think that the Internet is a global platform that covers everywhere you can think of, but there are some places and cases where that isn’t so. Either due to technological issues, broadcasting interference, or simply the preference of the populace, there are still places that heavily rely on TV and radio.
However, the ubiquity of the smartphone isn’t an easy thing to escape, so manufacturers and broadcasters alike have found common middle ground by allowing mobile to still carry the capability to broadcast and receive TV and radio signals. It’s an approach that’s a win-win scenario for everyone, including the users.
The future with mobile
Even considering the spread of use and interactions with it, the Internet is still relatively young. There are plenty of areas where it’s possible for both the old-school and the new to interact when it comes to either technology, programming, or culture. The mobile handheld has provided a platform to make this possible, allowing the growth of the Internet while simultaneously preventing the disappearance of old broadcasting media.
Since everyone is well on their way to getting a mobile device, the idea of a resurgence in TV or radio programming isn’t too farfetched. Certainly, it’ll be in a different form, a different flavor, but the inherent characteristics of this type of broadcasting formed the foundation of the i=Internet’s communications, and therefore, can work with it quite well.
