Broadband catching on with TV producers

Over 35 million homes in the U.S. now have broadband and 91 percent of the top 75 basic cable networks offer programs on their websites. While about half of these cable networks are merely using their web sites to promote existing programs, about 47 percent have figured out how to exploit broadband to drive incremental revenue.

Over time, the networks will adapt to let consumers watch what they want, regardless of program schedules.

"For the first time in history , cable TV networks, and indeed all video content producers and aggregators have the technical ability to deliver high-quality video directly to their intended audiences, without a business relationship involving a third-party distributor," said Broadband Directions CEO Will Richmond.

Yes, it sounds futuristic: grandma tuning into the Golden Girls at any time of the day on a pay-per-view basis. But it's increasingly a widely held vision.

In fact, Japanese consumers are already there. The Bro Dra is the name for Japanese residents who have become die-hard fans of Korean soap operas. The shows aren't broadcast on television: broadband is the only way to get them.