TV Needs to Learn from Games

Video games are leading the way with how people interact with media entertainment.   The way people play games now often shapes how they interact socially. The trouble is that a lot of this innovation stays in the gaming world and does not move over to more mainstream media -  namely TV. 

One area of innovation that is certainly untapped is the growth of VOIP chat in games.  Video games like SOCOM have clans of users who are brought together only by the game and regularly voice chat while playing.  Players learn about new products over this chat, they share ideas on how to play the game - they drive the experience giving it much more longevity as a media product.

What if TV could do this?  It seems that cable channels like TV Land, which are based on a particular avid fan base would do well with the same technology.  Perhaps as companies like Time Warner get into the digital phone business we might see the gap narrow.  The audience is there....the TV biz needs to catch up.