When I was a child, almost everyone I knew had a single telephone kept in a draughty hallway. Why the hallway I don’t know. Perhaps the bell was better heard from there or else they were copying the location from posher homes where once a butler would have answered it. Until recently, there was also a single place — a study or spare room — where people went to use a computer. Today laptops outsell desktops and wireless internet access means you can use them in every room. This seemingly small detail will have far-reaching effects.
For instance, have you ever wondered where people find time for the many hours they now spend on the net? Accepted wisdom long held we were watching less television. In fact the British spent more time watching broadcast television last month than ten years ago.
Where has the time come from? Radio and newspapers in part. But another explanation is that people use computers and television in tandem. You could see this as attention deficit disorder but, in truth, the two activities can be complementary. What television does badly (especially in-depth information), the web does spectacularly well.
So it’s odd how few attempts have been made to create entertainment to be consumed concurrently on both screens. I suspect this will be the next big thing in media. Reading Colin Cameron’s fascinating new book You Bet on the history of Betfair.com, I was intrigued to learn that thousands now use the site to place online bets while matches and races are in progress, the odds shifting dramatically up to the final seconds. This has transformed the thrill of betting on sports like golf and football. And gamblers have discovered for themselves a new form of parallel entertainment which media owners have overlooked.
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