The site isnewontv.com (currently down while I work on some data retrieval issues) was designed for dedicated viewers of television shows. The purpose of the site was to provide a simple, dedicated URL where viewers could locate the date of the next new episode of a given show.
Thanks to online broadcasts and digital video recorders, the way we view television is shifting. Nearly gone are the days of channel surfing. Mindless clicking of the channel selector is being replaced by prerecorded shows and the ability to find something of specific desire on any of a dozen video sites. Media consumers are learning to better segment and organize their viewing habits to take better advantage of their time. The viewer no longer works for the television because the viewer has learned how to make the television work for them.
When it comes to watching shows on broadcast television or even prerecorded or streaming versions of the show, one important piece of information can provide the viewer with an enormous amount of control. Knowing when is the next new episode of my show going to be made available to them allows them to prepare. Prepare to watch the show live. Prepare the DVR to capture an episode or series. Prepare their schedule to view the episode online. Preparation is key for the television viewer of today.
This service is nothing new. Guides have been available for the entire existence of my life. But they have always organized themselves by the way television forced us to think: first by time, second by channel. The problem today is viewers who care enough to seek out a particular show already know this information. They know the channel and don’t necessarily care about the exact time. Prerecordngs (DVR and online broadcasts) have caused viewers to forget the old paradigm where memorizing the day of the week a show typically aired on was so important. isnewontv.com does not focus on explaining where to go to find the show but rather when it’s alright to go out and seek the new content. Rather than sifting through a cluttered television guide or battling with the often useless on-screen guides, the site provides immediate understanding of the most basic question of a dedicated viewer of a particular television show.
To ensure that the user hadn’t missed the previous episode, in the instance of a mid-season schedule break, in addition to the next episode date, I also provided the previous episode date.
URL’s were created using sub-domains listing the title of the show first, followed by the site’s title. For example, lost.isnewontv.com or theoffice.isnewontv.com.