Madly in love with “24,” “Invasion,” “Prison Break” or “Family Guy”?
Then get ready to spend more, a lot more, time with them.
In the coming months, you and your TV addiction are going to be reeled into an expanded “environment” of your favorite network shows, one that may require a cover charge for entry into certain exclusive zones.
You’ll be invited to visit characters’ blogs at myspace.com, or pay for mobile phone episodes (known as mobisodes), or buy DVD packages and video games containing additional plot information. Your once-simple affair with your TV “story” could have as much to do with your computer, your cell phone and your DVD player as it does with your TV set.
Network TV is becoming only the first step in what is known as a “TV series.” It’s becoming an entry point to show-o-spheres:
– You not only watch Fox’s “24” on Mondays but you purchase a “24” DVD set that contains clues to the season’s big mysteries.
– You not only watch ABC’s “Lost” on Wednesdays but you check into the weekly podcast to hear, say, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje talk about playing Mr. Eko.
– You don’t just laugh at “The Office” on Tuesdays; you laugh at Dwight’s blog entries on the NBC site and on myspace.com.
Recently, “Invasion” included a plot in which paranoid Dave was abducted because of his blog, which exists on ABC’s site. Neil Patrick Harris’ Barney on “How I Met Your Mother” frequently refers to his blog, which is on the CBS site.
DVD extras have been with us for years as well as the marketing of T-shirts and knickknacks. But now integral plot and character developments also are becoming available outside of the televised mothership. Last week, for example, Fox announced plans to create new episodes of its animated hit “Family Guy” exclusively for the Web next year, for a fee.
“Audience viewing habits are evolving,” says Nina Tassler, president of CBS Entertainment. “And to that end, we want to be there with them when they want to view elements of their favorite TV shows.”
She says viewers are showing increasing loyalty and commitment to their top series, so that they’re now more willing to explore beyond what comes to them free from the network.
“We’re doing it in drama, comedy and alternative,” Tassler says about CBS’ plans to expand on its shows. “But right now, a lot of the stuff is under the cone of silence in the development world.”
Last week, the network did announce a deal with Verizon Wireless’ V Cast multimedia service that will offer cell phone users previews and original behind-the-scenes material. The price for these snippets has yet to be announced, but in the past, mobisodes, including a series based on Fox’s “The Simple Life,” have sold for 99 cents apiece.
Are TV viewers about to feel betrayed by their shows? Will their direct and intimate relationship to the narratives of “24” and “Family Guy” be tested in the coming years?
“The show should stand on its own,” says Gordon of “24.” “That’s where all our efforts are. We never do anything that’s going to take away from the show.”
’24’ TAKES THE LEAD
Fox’s “24” has been successful in expanding beyond the TV set to get its rabid fans new information about characters and plot. Here are some examples of what “24” is doing:
– The Season 4 DVD set offers a prequel to Season 5 that will not air on TV, even while it illuminates Jack Bauer’s story line. Season 5 premieres Jan. 15.
– A new “24” Playstation 2 product, “24: The Game,” will include exclusive plot information set during the interim between seasons two and three. Due in stores Feb. 28.
– A series of 24 mobisodes lasting a minute each follow a “24”-like adventure in counterterrorism. The mobisodes only include actors not seen on TV–something that won’t change until a business model is made with acting and writing unions in mind.
THE BOSTON GLOBE.
