I was wondering who decides ...
Question: I was wondering who decides which shows post full episodes online. I ask because the traffic jam that is Monday night (with someone who doesn't have a DVR and is working with the old VCR) prevents me from watching
The Big Bang Theory live. Currently, CBS is not posting full episodes online but only clips of the show, which is a disgrace given how great this little-known gem is. I admit that in the interest of instant gratification — since the CW refuses to post
Gossip Girl episodes online until Sunday or even Monday — I always watch this guilty pleasure live so I don't have to wait a week to catch up. I am reduced to watching grainy versions of
Big Bang online when CBS could be inundating me with ads online in exchange for viewership. I'm not complaining, since it is truly fun to have so many shows I enjoy watching. Really, when were Mondays ever this packed?
Answer: As far as I know, these are contractual matters, and the whole idea of making shows available online has been a sticking point in those ugly labor negotiations from guilds who aren't all that keen on giving away the store for free, so to speak. There's an upside in giving shows this extra exposure, but also a downside in giving viewers more options not to watch things live, which is where the money still is. For the most part, but certainly not exclusively, the shows most likely to be streamed on a network website are those the network's parent company owns. The fact that
The Big Bang Theory is produced by Warner Bros., not CBS/Paramount, may have something to do with its unavailability online, but I'm not an expert on this. The good news is that
Big Bang is the kind of show, unlike many nowadays, that tends to air repeats, so you will eventually have more chances to catch these episodes, which I, of course, highly recommend.
