At about 11 PM EST last night, while I was watching either I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant or Toddlers and Tiaras (not that you need to know that), NY Post dropped the bombshell news that ABC sold the rights to bitterly cancelled soaps All My Children and One Life to Live to management/production firm Prospect Park. And those grieving over the incurable death of Dorian and Erica and Tad and Dixie in their lives felt like they received a last minute cure a la Gregory House.
After all the Casey Anthony drama, us people with a uterus are in seriously need of a pick-me-up, and this short little article was like a late night twitter prozac. The article, which spread in minutes, suggests that this deal will not merely be online syndication of past broadcast episodes but that the new venture will actually continue the stories! Hello!!!! Of course, none of this is confirmed, so you may want to take this with the same grain of truth you take Lindsay Lohan articles on TMZ (not that you should know that I read those either.) UPDATE: THIS IS SOOOOOO CONFIRMED.
Lately, it seems things are a stir in digital media/web television/web series land. With hulu, netflix, youtube, blip, NBCuni all making big announcements about their digital ventures in just the last few weeks, here is another online business venture throwing itself onto the pile, except this one has a built-in digitally-friendly audience of millions and a legacy of brands willing to spend big dough to advertise alongside its scripted content. So snap!
I have been saying for some time that broadcast soaps should transition online. Soap fans are some of the most digitally connected people on earth and they are already way used to watching online video. In the meantime, we have seen many independent soaps emerge online to much fan success like Anacostia, DeVanity and California Heaven. Many soap stars have also dabbled in online series like Gotham, The Bay, Steamboat, Fumbling Thru The Pieces, and Venice. Perhaps somebody caught on to the good thing we have going on here?
The caveats of course are the budgetary and storytelling differences in broadcast and online series, so don’t expect your shows necessarily to look or feel the same once they become all webby. That may not be a bad thing. Soap fans have been vocal about the changes they felt were necessary in their fave soaps and networks did not seem to incorporate them, so perhaps fans would start getting their shows the way they actually want them. I mean, adventure is always good in soaps! UPDATE: THE EARLY INDICATIONS ARE THAT THE SHOW WOULD REMAIN IN ITS SAME FORMAT AND LENGTH, JUST ONLINE.
What do you think? Would you watch your soaps online?
Yes I would watch the series on line, just let us know when & where! Love AMC & AMC, hopefully GH will still be on air. Need to be able to record my soaps!
I would indeed watch my soaps on line. I normally don’t like on line viewing but would do anything to continue seeing my soaps.
I love AMC and All My Children and often watch them online anyway. Of course I would watch them online!