Tia Simawang
While television may have been an integral part of the household for decades, recently other alternatives have taken precedence.
At the end of a long, hard day, many find it comforting to retire into the cushions of their couch to unwind before the latest episode of their favorite show. But often times, busy schedules and hectic lives get in the way of a solid hour of pure TV, ushering in an age of newer alternatives such as Netflix, Hulu and Torrenting.
Netflix, founded in 1997, is a company that provides internet streaming and mail in services for an endless variety of movies. For $9.99 a month, people find themselves easily addicted to the plethora of movies, leading to the mass exodus from the TV fandom. Polling at over 1 million users, Netflix’s influence continues to spread and entice new customers with the addition of both classic and new movies, making Netflix’s founder one of the nation’s Top 25 influential men.
For those who want to keep up with more recent episodes a shows, Hulu has made a name for itself with its easy accessibility and free services. Hulu offers HD internet streaming of most shows for the small price of a few commercials. Although it had a rocky start, Hulu has rocketed to the top of the internet’s most popular viewing sites.
But for a tight budget of time and money, one of the most popular alternatives is Torrenting. Although illegal, torrenting has become a huge source for people to download and watch their favorite episodes almost immediately after they air. Differing from the standard websites such as Netflix and Hulu, torrenting has become much like a community amongst users and uploaders.
