People like to complain about the internet, but the truth is, our lives are much richer for having it. Just think about how easy it is to travel, work, and stay in touch with friends with the internet by your side. While it’s far from perfect, there’s no doubt that virtually no one would voluntarily give up the web.
The benefits of the internet come even more clearly into focus when we look at the impact it’s had on entertainment like music, gaming, and video content. The difference between the pre-internet era and today is as stark as night and day. In this post, we’ll take a closer look at this impact, outlining just what a transformative impact it’s had on these entertainment forms.
It Pushes New Music Your Way
Music lovers have been discovering new artists forever, but in the old days, that would mean spending hours at the CD store, or just liking whatever MTV and other tastemakers promoted.
The internet has decentralised the music-discovery process. Thanks to Spotify and other streaming platforms, fans can easily find bands and artists that they otherwise would never have found. And when they do discover those musicians, they can quickly take a deep dive into everything that they’ve recorded before, their background, related artists, and more. A journey that might have taken months in the olden days can be completed in hours.
It Makes Discovering New Games a Breeze
As with music, the internet has also allowed people to discover games more easily. Each year, there are more than 10,000 titles released on Steam, and there are many others released on iGaming websites, especially slots. With so many options, gamers can find the next game they’re going to play with just a few clicks of a button. Plus, though the leading titles can cost a fair amount of money, the majority of games are highly affordable. In fact, in the case of mobile games, they’re free to play. So not only has the web opened up the world of gaming for users, but it’s also had a positive impact on their bank accounts.
And Breathes Life Into Other Classics
The internet hasn’t just had a positive impact on new games. It’s also helped to breathe life into older classics, too, ones that might have fallen out of favour without the power of the web. Bridge, for example, may have been highly popular in the past, but its popularity was beginning to wane. The internet allowed new players to learn the complex rules of the game from the comfort of their homes, ensuring the game continues to thrive.
It also had a positive impact on Omaha poker, a poker variant that was mostly living in the shadows of the more widely-played Texas Hold’em poker when casinos were mostly land-based. Indeed, in the case of casinos that only offered one type, it wasn’t in the shadows at all but rather wiped from existence. Today, players can play Omaha at websites that offer multiple variants, ensuring that the version doesn’t just stay alive, but thrives.
Finally, we can also credit the internet with increasing the popularity of mahjong, which was historically played only in China, Korea, and Japan, but which is now played all over the world.
On-Demand Viewing
The internet has revolutionised how we consume our favourite TV shows and movies. It’s unusual to think about now, but people used to have to wait for their favourite television shows to be shown on a channel (which they would need to have, of course). If they were out and forgot to record it, then they’d simply miss the show.
The internet has allowed people to consume shows and movies whenever and wherever they want. Want to binge-watch your favourite television show while you lie in bed? Of course you do — we all do from time to time. For that and so much more, you can thank Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee, the creator of the internet.
