The Oxford Dictionary team works hard to keep its content up-to-date with the latest changes in the English language. Its crew of language experts (Lexicographers, to be exact—yes, there is such a thing) monitors new words and phrases and decides which ones to include in the dictionary.
These updates are released every few months and reflect additions and changes to currently spoken English. In June of 2018, millions of Americans saw their favorite guilty pleasure legitimized by the world's leading authority of the current English language.
The term binge-watching had become a real word.
It's important to note here that Oxford Dictionaries is a branch of the Oxford University Press that publishes the Oxford English Dictionary. The OED, as it's known in literary circles, is a far more posh publication. You won't see the likes of "noob" or "bro hug" listed in its more than 600,000-word agglomerate.
The Oxford Dictionary is way more chill.
The point is that binge-watching is so prevalent and so widely discussed that it's officially a term in our language.
Assuming you're in one of the 99% of households that have at least one streaming service, we probably don't need to tell you, but binge-watching refers to the phenomenon of watching multiple episodes of a TV show or streaming a series in one sitting, often for hours on end. It's an activity that is only possible thanks to streaming.
Constant Content: Streaming's Superpower
Streaming services offer access to a greater variety of content, including exclusive shows and movies that you can't find elsewhere.
Streaming has made it easier to view content from anywhere in the world. With the click of a button, we can watch shows and movies that we might not have had access to in the past. This wider range of options available at any time of the day truly sets streaming apart from traditional live television or even its cable and satellite counterparts.
Streaming platforms often release entire seasons of shows at once, allowing viewers to watch at their own pace, and some of you clearly have no self-control.
The Evolution of Watching On Demand
Make no mistake: Americans have always loved their media. By 1964, approximately 93% of households had a television. Consuming media via a screen in our living rooms started strong and hasn't let up. It's simply the way we gain access to what we want to see that has evolved.
B.S. (Before Streaming)
With streaming services, you can watch your favorite shows and movies on demand whenever and wherever you want. You can also pause, rewind, and fast-forward through content, which, as the elder millennials will tell you (and don't get Gen X started), wasn't always this way.
Yes, that's right, kids. On-demand used to mean driving to the video store on a Friday night and hoping you'd gotten there before the new release shelf was empty. There was typically a limit on the number of titles you could borrow at one time, and TV shows or series weren't options that were available. Binge-watching would have to wait.
Although there is something quite nostalgic about a visit to the video store, it was total B.S.
Enter Netflix, but not like you think.
In the early years of the company, before the advent of online streaming, customers could sign up to receive DVDs of their favorite movies and TV shows through the mail.
Users could create a queue of titles they wanted to watch, and Netflix would send them one DVD at a time, with no due dates or late fees. Once a user was done watching a DVD, they would simply put it back in the provided envelope and send it back to Netflix, at which point the next title in their queue would be sent to them.
We were getting better at binging, but in 2007, Netflix really changed the game by offering the first on-demand video streaming service.
The streaming service was initially offered as a free add-on for Netflix's DVD rental subscribers. It featured a limited selection of movies and TV shows that could be watched on a computer or other internet-connected device. The selection was mostly made up of older and less popular titles, and the video quality was often poor due to the limitations of internet bandwidth at the time.
Netflix continued to invest in developing new technology and expanding its content library. In 2010, the company began to offer streaming as a standalone service, allowing customers to subscribe to just the streaming service without also renting DVDs.
Today, Netflix is one of the most popular streaming services in the world, with millions of subscribers and a vast library of movies, TV shows, and original programming. They also paved the way for the myriad of other providers and quite literally initiated the revolution of the way we watch.
What's So Special About Streaming?
While some argue that binge-watching can be a form of escapism, others see it as a way to catch up on shows they may have missed during their original run or simply enjoy a relaxing day or evening on the couch. Perhaps the biggest perks lie in the amount of control consumers have over their consumption habits.
Escapism
A six-hour binge can really transport a person into another world. The longer you watch, the easier it is to get lost in a story or enveloped in a plot. Binge-watching is a common way for people to escape from their daily lives and immerse themselves in a fictional world, which can be a welcome distraction from the stresses and challenges of our day.
Go ahead. Dissociate with Stranger Things. Get carried away with The Crown. Forget about everything and watch Fallout.
Catch up With Flexibility and Convenience
Streaming is compatible with any schedule. No matter how busy your schedule gets, your next break can be filled with the last episode you missed. It's easy to set reminders or make a must-watch list so you don't forget where you last left off in Ozark.
On-the-go watching is also an unparalleled convenience offered with streaming. Watch your favorite content on your favorite devices for even more entertainment efficiency.
Entertainment A la Carte
Streaming has changed the way we pay for entertainment. Instead of paying for cable or satellite TV, which often presents packages including channels you don't have a chance of clicking, you can opt for streaming to get a more affordable and customizable experience.
It's even common to cancel and renew around the release of your favorite series. If Disney doesn't appeal to you when you're finished with The Mandalorian, you can cancel. With streaming, this is the way.
Control
I am the one thing in life I can control. Au contraire, Aaron Burr, you can control your streaming experience! Pause, rewind, and fast-forward to your heart's content. Skip over parts you don't like, re-watch scenes you enjoyed, or pause the program to take a break from your binge whenever you need to.
Many streaming services also offer personalized recommendations based on a user's viewing history, allowing you to discover new content (and more binging!) that you may have otherwise missed.
With streaming, you have complete control. How you conduct yourself around Theodosia is another issue.
Did we just inspire you to stream Hamilton?
Consuming Other Content Through Streaming Services
Although binge-watching is a term reserved for viewing a show or series, we also have streaming access to other forms of media. And we consume it voraciously, too.
YouTube became available to the public in December of 2005, and although it's expanded to offer movies, it originated as a video-sharing platform. YouTube allows users to watch and share videos on a variety of topics, including music, entertainment, education, and more. Users can create accounts to upload their own videos, comment on videos, and subscribe to channels of other users they enjoy, and it is hugely popular.
YouTube is the second most-visited website, ranking behind the juggernaut that is Google. With over 33 billion visitors, it far exceeds next-in-line Facebook, which comes in with 17.8
Mixtapes and burned CDs met their match with the rising popularity of digital music platforms, but music streaming is next-level for music lovers. With a highly-affordable monthly subscription, fans can get an earful of their favorite artists any time any where.
It's nothing short of magical for anyone who grew up poised to push record at the exact right moment your favorite song came on the radio.
Streaming: A Success Story
Streaming has given viewers more control over their entertainment consumption while also opening up new opportunities for content creators and distributors.
Today, streaming services are more popular than ever, with millions of people around the world opting to cut the cord and ditch traditional cable and satellite TV in favor of streaming options.
While the landscape continues to evolve, it's clear that streaming is here to stay and will continue to shape the way we consume media for years to come.
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