Remember water coolers?
Remember going into an office to work?
Work used to be great at creating shared experiences. You could go into the office, head to the water cooler, and talk about last night’s episode of Three’s Company, Family Ties, Cheers, Seinfeld, Desperate Housewives, or The Office. But around 2008, times started changing.
We slowly saw AMC and HBO taking over over-the-air channels with shows like Mad Men, Breaking Bad, The Wire, and Game of Thrones. Then Netflix came with House of Cards and Orange Is the New Black. After that, the best water cooler shows were no longer freely available; some now could be binged in one sitting.
Competition shows are all that remain. It started with Survivor, then American Idol, and now The Voice and Masked Singer. Unfortunately, I don’t love watching mediocre singers sing, and fringe performers perform.
I want to laugh!
The Pitch
Create a scripted choose-your-own-adventure comedy sitcom. Then, allow the nation to vote on the outcomes.
Democratize Television!
There will be a weekly subscription to watch, and then if you want to decide the fate of the show’s characters, you have to pay to vote. Twice a show, you get to vote on three different options. Then, when the show is over, a survey gives feedback and possible directions the show should go in.
There’s plenty of other revenue streams. Provide the un-aired scenes as a bonus for subscribers. You keep all the content in your app and allow people the opportunity to have something talk about around their Zoom water coolers.
