Has anyone visited TVshowsonDVD.com?
The site is a listing for people to lobby for the shows they enjoy the most to be released on DVD. I originally became aware of the site when I joined a group of fans of the 1980s TV show Mama's Family that have been rallying for the show on the Web site.
Basically, people join and list all of the shows that they would buy on DVD if they were released. So far, the Mama's Family rallying has gotten it up to number 12 of all unreleased shows with almost 3,000 households voting for it, from what I understand. And, it will be moving up farther because three shows ahead of it on the list, which I believe are Wings," SeaQuest, and The Adventures of Brisco County Jr., are all being released on DVD.
The Web site reminded me very much of Chris Anderson's Long Tail theory that has gained so much attention in the entertainment industry. I voted for less popular shows, such as Benson, that I would buy if they were released on DVD, yet there was no show that I voted for that didn't already have votes. Sites like this prove that there are markets for all types of shows, and the Long Tail theory is beautifully shown through the rankings on TVshowsonDVD.com. If you haven't checked out the site, you should do so, and vote for whatever strange favorite you might have.
And, while you're there, feel free to vote for Thelma Harper. If you help me get the show released, we'll all take a trip to Raytown, stop at the Bigger Jigger, and I'll buy.
I've used the site. Sentinel fans were campaigning for years for them to bring The Sentinel out on DVD (or anything). Sentinel had to be one of the more second hand fandoms since it used to be a total nightmare to get your hands on any episodes.
I'm cynical so I suspect that the fact the Richard Burgi's suddenly becoming more noticed might have had more to do with the eventual release of season 1 (Region only obviously but that is what multiregion DVD players are for) than any campaining but the impression that the fans got was that The Powers That Be were paying more attention to TVShowsOnDVD than to the letter writing and postcard campaigns.
Faith, I would think that you are right, and it's nice for fan communities to have a place to mobilize themselves in a way that helps underline the bottom line for companies that only care about that. Interesting point about The Sentinel, and I think there are a lot of happy endings that end up coming out of a fan drive that makes its way onto TV Shows on DVD.