Online video forces changes on TV industry

Having turned print media upside down, the internet is now disrupting television, forcing broadcasters to adapt to tablets and video-on-demand to hold onto views and advertisers.

"The gap between what consumers want and the way the industry is delivering it has grown so big that the industry now has to start to make some moves," said Forrester Research analyst Jim Nail.

The second-quarter results of the big US media groups confirmed that cable networks remain their cash cows.

For the first time this year, however, American adults are spending more time with the internet than in front of television sets - about five hours a day compared with 4.5, according to a study in eMarketer this month.

The independent market research firm notes that users sometimes use the internet and watch television at the same time - and that video represents only part of online consumption.

That does not stop a group like Netflix, which offers films and original programming on demand, from growing and spawning imitators such as Amazon's online streaming service.

The formula is favoured by youngsters who relish cartoons on their tablet devices and television binge-viewers who watch multiple episodes of their favourite shows in one sitting.