CBS Boldly Goes Where Other Networks Have Gone Before

Last week there was a minor hullabaloo about NBC’s announcement to stream full-length episodes of vintage television programs on NBC.com and some other network-owned, online properties. Classics like The A-Team, Miami Vice, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Battlestar Galactica and others will be available to view in their ad-supported entirety.

Of course, many of these programs are already available on the NBC/News Corporation joint venture, Hulu, and on OPENHulu for those without a beta invite to the original.  It seems that NBC is taking a monitored, super distribution approach, pushing their content out to as many of its wholly or partially owned subsidiaries as possible. It’s a smart idea.

What happened last week with a little less hullabaloo was CBS’s announcement

to stream full-length episodes of vintage television programs on CBS.com. Early seasons of Star Trek, MacGuyver, The Twilight Zone, Hawaii Five-O, and Melrose Place are now available for your viewing pleasure.

The quality is only decent and the video player doesn’t expand to full screen. But on a gloomy Saturday in a New York City that’s covered in eight inches of snow, watching the resourceful Angus complete impossible missions for the Phoenix Foundation and seeing what made William Shatner the man is as entertaining an option as anything else. Besides, my sled and $115 doggy snow boots are in the shop.