Après Strike, The Other Shoe Drops

ABC to offer shows on-demand, with commercials:

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) — ABC said Monday it will release hit shows like “Lost” and “Desperate Housewives” for free over video-on-demand cable services, with the hitch that viewers will have to sit through commercials without being able to fast-forward.

The Walt Disney Co., parent company of the network, is aiming to profit from ads sold for the video-on-demand offerings while expanding its digital strategy beyond programs distributed on its Web site, abc.com.

“We’re trying to drive everyone back to television but very much understand that with everybody’s lifestyles, they can’t necessarily watch that way and we don’t want to lose them altogether,” Disney spokeswoman Karen Hobson said.

…

Under the deal, local affiliates will be able to sell one 30-second ad on the content, while ABC will sell from four to nine other commercials to national advertisers.

I’m of two minds on this. Part of me thinks that this is an attempt to recapture the viewers lost during the strike–after all, it’s not like there can be a steroid-fueled assault on a home run record to bring viewers back.

At the same time, the cynic in me says that ABC had this ready before the settlement, just wanting to make sure the new agreement would keep these profits in the clear.