Multi-channel transition

According to Amanda D. Lotz, the multi-channel transition began in the early 1980s and lasted about 20 years. Many changes happened during this transition such as the invention of the remote control, the video cassette player, and analog cable systems expanded viewer's choice and control. This era gave viewers more choice and control over what and when they wanted to view a program. Viewers were able to defy the networks' schedules, because they could record the program and watch it whenever they wanted, using the VCR and later the DVR. Producers adjusted to the government regulations and networks were forced to give up some of the control they had over program creation. Subscription channels emerged with no advertisements and the method for measuring audiences grew with the Nielsen People Meter.

New broadcast networks emerged such as Fox in 1986, The WB in 1995 and the UPN in 1995 and all added great competition to the original networks, NBC, ABC, and CBS. The percentage of people who watched network television dropped from 90% to 64% in the 1980s. During the 1990s, in spite of the new broadcast competitors, viewers carried on to switch from prime time viewing to cable, even though the rate wasn't as high as before. Still, broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, The WB, and UPN) gathered an average of only 58 percent of those watching television at the end of the 1999-2000 season, and only 46 percent in the final of the 2004-2005 season.

The remote control became standard on most television sets in the 1980s and that helped the viewers break away from the network era. The VCR further helped viewers to break away from the network era by enabling them to record a program and view it when they wanted to. The VCR also allowed people to build personal libraries. All of these new technologies allowed the viewer greater choice and control over specific media.

...
Wikipedia