SEINFELD RETURNING — ON THE WEB

An upcoming series by Jerry Seinfeld titled Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee could become a turning point for home entertainment, some observers are suggesting. The show, due to launch on Thursday, July 19 at 9:00 p.m. (Seinfeld‘s old time slot) and available only online, will feature interviews with comedians, including Ricky Gervais, Michael Richards, Alec Baldwin, Larry David, and others. It will be available on Crackle, Sony Pictures Entertainment’s online video site, which also hosts several episodes of Seinfeld’s eponymous television series. Crackle also has a presence on YouTube, can be viewed on TV sets via a settop box or a Smart TV, and a free app is available via the iTunes store for viewing its content on an iPhone or iPad. The series is being promoted via Seinfeld’s Facebook page, the show’s own Facebook page, and its own website, which currently streams a video of Gervais and Seinfeld sitting in a convertible, glancing at each other, then laughing maniacally — followed by the anouncement “Talking Soon.” The proliferation of shows like this on the web is likely to draw viewers away from traditional broadcast and cable TV, BTIG analyst Richard Greenfield said today (Thursday). “Video consumption is going up in total, but traditional television will be a share loser,” he wrote. “We continue to expect 2012 to be the first year, in which total TV viewing time per household goes down.”