myturtlespeedy:

palmtreepalmtree:

edwardspoonhands:

So, I noticed a funny thing while on the Tour de Nerdfighting. Not only was the biggest cheer of the night for the part where I stuck “Benedict Cumberbatch” into Book 8, but pretty much everyone had seen season two of Sherlock.

Don’t get me wrong, I had also seen season two (or should I…

I saw Season 1 on PBS, and I will wait until Season 2 is on PBS.  The show is just a good show - no matter where I get it.   Yes, I’m completely left out, and by now the ending has been given away for me because there’s nowhere to hide from it on the internet.  But I wouldn’t feel cooler, or more accomplished for having worked hard to find a place to steal it.  I would just wonder how my lack of viewership when the thing actually airs was going to impact future programming on PBS.  I mean, ultimately when we steal intellectual property, aren’t we making it harder and harder for us to find entertainment we love by not helping to fund it properly?

I’m not advocating copyright infringement but unless you have a Nielsen device installed on your TV what you watch (or don’t watch) has no effect on what gets made.

Right but those without Nielsen boxes are already watching the show via illegal means, which has created a culture where there is social pressure to watch in advance of national airing and illegal viewing is not only acceptable but the norm.  And that culture likely will have an impact on those with Nielsen boxes.  In other words, Nielsen households are representative of overall ratings for a reason, and we can’t expect Nielsen households to act any differently than the rest of us.  In that sense, it does potentially impact what gets made.