The world has been changed a lot by the internet. It’s a fact we can see proven in practically every facet of modern life. From banking to shopping to communicating and working, there isn’t a single aspect of our lives that hasn’t been transformed in some way by the internet.

While the amount of content written about this topic could fill the Main Branch of the New York Public Library, there’s always room for more commentary! Especially if we close in on a specific way in which our lives have been altered by the internet. 

With this in mind, let’s take a look at how the internet changed the way we experience entertainment:

Movies

When was the last time you went to the movie theater? Chances are it’s been a while. But if you’re old enough, you remember a time when the only way to watch new movies was to see them in the theater. Another way the internet changed the way we enjoy movies is access; those who wanted to watch an older film had to rent or borrow a video tape or disc copy before the internet. Now, thanks to streaming, the ability to watch movies is a question of how much you’re willing to pay to have access.

Television

Remember the days when new episodes of your favorite TV show aired once a week? If you had plans that night, you had to remember to record it on video, or else you had no choice but to wait for a rerun. What’s more, you were limited to one episode per week! These days, thanks to the internet, we can binge-watch an entire television series in a few days.

Music

It’s no coincidence that music industry profits peaked in 1999. That’s around the time when music-sharing platforms like Napster enabled folks to listen to their favorite musicians without buying cassettes and CDs. While the music industry has done a decent job evolving with the times to the point where it’s now easier to subscribe to a music streaming service than pirate musical content, we’re now able to listen to virtually any song ever made by searching for it on YouTube. As long as you’re willing to sit through a few seconds of advertising, you can enjoy any song your heart desires. How times have changed!

Gaming

There was once a time when video games were a strictly local source of entertainment. In other words, you could play with your friends in your living room, but that’s the extent of your multiplayer experience. What’s more, the entire game was confined to what was in the cartridge or disc. But thanks to the internet, people can play with friends and strangers from all over the world. And thanks to cloud computing, we no longer have to worry about lost saves or whether or not the game will work.

Gambling

If you wanted to place bets in the United States prior to 2013, you had two options: go to a casino or engage in illegal gambling through organized crime. But starting that year, New Jersey became the first state to legalize online gambling. Then in 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States struck down a federal law forbidding online sports betting. Now it’s possible to play online poker and place game day bets courtesy of NFL live lines, all without leaving the couch! While the legality of online gambling varies from state to state, it remains a significant change courtesy of the internet.

Travel

Planning a trip to a place you’ve never visited used to be quite a hassle. You needed travel guides, maps, and information about airline and hotel availability. More times than not, folks turned to travel agencies for help. But thanks to the internet, it’s possible to do a walking tour of a faraway city courtesy of Google Street View, enabling would-be travelers to familiarize themselves with a destination before ever setting foot there. Travel vlogs on Youtube and travel-related Facebook posts from friends and family provide further means of traveling easier thanks to the internet. Lastly, with the aid of real-time translator apps, we can communicate across languages in an efficient albeit limited way, courtesy of access to the internet!

The list of ways the world has changed thanks to the internet is virtually endless. When it comes to the ways in which we experience entertainment, it’s safe to say the internet has been a major game-changer.