[Discussion]What is TV, what is Film?

[bobsobol]

Okay, I'm posting this for discussion because we don't have any rules which define those terms, and yet we have people (even respectable people I know have done good work on staff)

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which I'm not so sure about.

What do you consider TV?
Are we talking about stuff that's broadcast on terrestrial only? Does cable and satellite count? In which countries, and if so why do internet streams not count? To what level? And why?

Here's the thing. Why is YouTube not TV? I don't have a TV set, or any means of receiving terrestrial signals. I don't have cable or satellite any more either because all those things are taxable, and the internet isn't, besides which, I can watch all the shows I can see on any of those, and a whole lot more besides on the internet, on-demand, when I want, where I want and how I want.

Additionally, we have a thread on "

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" which (as far as I can see) is aired on the internet first. (more traditional broadcasters may, I suppose re-air it, if they want) Nobody has complained that this is "off-topic"?

What do you consider Film?
Again, I don't go to a theatre to watch feature length productions, and usually end up catching "films" on the internet. I used to use video rental for DVDs until I became a HD snob, I would have gone BlueRay but the internet is cheaper. Additionally, I watch a lot of "films" which premier on the internet, or in art-houses around the world and never come to a theatre anywhere near me.

What is definitively NOT?
I can accept that some YouTube videos are definitely not TV. Many traditional TV channels are airing their regular programming on YouTube, so I can't imagine that anyone discounts that. However home movies of my cat chasing a ball of string is almost certainly not. OTOH, Mr. T's "Worlds Craziest Fools" is almost entirely filled with clips from the YouTube, and claims to be TV!? So what do you think is "definitely not TV", and why?

I feel this line is getting painfully thin, and I just wonder what the consensus is among members between what is and is not TV, and / or Film.

When answering, remember what I will act upon, and to what extent, is likely to be governed by opinions expressed here. If it can lead to guidelines being updated, that would be great. However, I also see this line moving as time passes.

 

[exprox]

Simple Like Boss straight to the cut no peer pressure just doing my thing

TV= something you watch for free,and in return you dont complain about boring chanels because they are free
Film=something you watch by paying,and in return you get choose you chanels because you paid for it
NOT= vines videos

 

[Savage]

TV are things on the TV.
Films are things that come out in cinema, DVDs, or TV.


....

 

[Bloodraven]

TV = things on TV channels
Films = things that are not sport and are on for more than an hour and twenty minutes.

 

[bobsobol]

TV= something you watch for free,and in return you dont complain about boring chanels because they are free

Watching TV for free is illegal, in the country I live. ;p Not that your payment offers you much say in what is on... that's why I don't pay, and don't watch. ^_^

YouTube is free. Vimeo is free. 4OD is free and, amazingly iPlayer, is free. Apparently, the bit you have to pay all that money in TV fees for, is to watch it at the exact same time as everyone else, regardless of whatever else you may have had planned... Coz that's a plus, right? lol

Nice answers guys. Keep 'em coming. I especially like the perception that a "Film" is longer than 1hr20m.

 

[Bloodraven]

Watching TV for free is illegal, in the country I live. ;p Not that your payment offers you much say in what is on... that's why I don't pay, and don't watch. ^_^

YouTube is free. Vimeo is free. 4OD is free and, amazingly iPlayer, is free. Apparently, the bit you have to pay all that money in TV fees for, is to watch it at the exact same time as everyone else, regardless of whatever else you may have had planned... Coz that's a plus, right? lol

Nice answers guys. Keep 'em coming. I especially like the perception that a "Film" is longer than 1hr20m.

That's just how I see films, I don't watch documentaries that often, and if I do there on for about an hour, you have the odd TV series premiere where it's on for an hour or two. And isn't iPlayer only free if you have an up-to date TV License? it's not technically free but they don't have a check on it.

 

[Lewis]

I would class TV as something that is aired on a TV or it is out on a series/multiple episodes.

Films what come out in the cinema to then be released on DVD/Blu Ray

 

[Justice For All]

I understand what you are getting at bobo, and it's mainly the internet media that gets misunderstood. TV is of-course anything that originates from the television, and Film of-course is anything that originates from a VHS, DVD, etc. Then you have internet media, that has not been on TV or Film, just the internet. IE straight from camera to the computer. I think that's where the problem arises, it's like a grey area.

 

[bobsobol]

And isn't iPlayer only free if you have an up-to date TV License?

Nope.

it's not technically free but they don't have a check on it.

Been checked twice, was completely open about iPlayer and was explicitly told, on both occasions and once in writing that, provided you do not watch BBC News or live sports on there, it's legal and not licensable. ^_^

Anyone else watch

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? I didn't catch it the day it was released, but not long after. This is what I mean... and you're right that it's grey JFA, but only because we don't use celluloid (Film) for Films any more, and are increasingly broadcasting TV for viewing on devices that are not televisions, and via non-traditional mediums. (ie. not analogue signals on radio waves)

What is broadcast on digital terrestrial, is increasingly "reality TV" and video mash-ups from home videos... which is essentially what vlogs and the majority of YouTube is about. There are feature length documentary and art films which are never distributed to major theatres on Discovery, RT, Vimeo etc. and various YouTube channels have evolved series just like any TV channel.

Personally, I see

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, and certainly

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as being, essentially the same thing as John Cravens' Newsround which was run on TV when I was a kid. (RIP John Craven)

I don't view these things as any different, except that they don't have a fixed viewing time and, recently, they don't dribble out of the arse of a few old farts who have manoeuvred themselves into positions where they control *all* the mass media companies.

So if you *do* see them as something different... why? What makes YouTube not TV? Why would Vimeo films, or Quantum Project not be valid films? Just because they're on the internet? How does that work? How do you justify Blair Witch or the Hobbit (both famously being shot entirely on digital camcorders) as being "Film" if that's your stance? Does anyone think that

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is "not TV" or, especially, does anyone think it is, but nothing else on YouTube could ever count? ('coz that would seem super-weird to me XD)

And, honestly, I'm just interested to know, because I can't see it. I'm not saying it isn't true, I just don't understand why it should be.

 

[ColeRoman]

Over the years, the way we consume entertainment has undergone a significant transformation. Traditional cable TV, while once dominant, is gradually being replaced by streaming services. The convenience of watching what you want, when you want, has fueled this shift.

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takes this evolution further by introducing live content streaming, catering to those who crave instant access to events as they happen.