• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, November 11, 2021

We are running out of ways to expand our personal time in using media, where estimates of 8 hours to 9 hours a day might be tops. Safety or mental-health concerns, anybody?

Sure, you might sleep less to catch up on all the “Squid Game” episodes you've missing. But perhaps you haven’t looked at those other niche areas, such as commuting car time.

Self-driving cars have given some the idea -- looking beyond just safety concerns -- of what could come next: Watching TV shows and other content on one’s commute. And not watching the road.

A survey from marketing company Vericast says only 37% would not consider streaming TV content in self-driving cars. On long distance road trips of a 100 miles or more, respondents say, as passengers, 36% have streaming content in a vehicle. And 9% in self-driving vehicles.

Remember just passengers, not drivers.

One regular hour-long commute each day, each way, means just enough time to catch up on any “NCIS,” “This is Us,” “Stranger Things” or “The Handmaid’s Tale” episodes.

In a perfect world, what would be the engagement factor of advertisers looking to access that kind of channel -- ad-supported streaming platforms while on the move? Surely, the possibilities are endless.

Even without being behind the wheel -- well, maybe without hands on the wheel -- it shouldn’t be difficult to have your vehicle steered to the right physical location to your desired consumer product or service after seeing some ad-supported streaming messaging.

Perhaps those self-driving cars will have seats that face backwards, in the opposite direction of where the moving vehicle is headed. No point is riling myself up over road ragers or other distractions.

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Think about self-driving cars in the near-term.

In September, U.S. auto safety regulators identified the 12th crash involving Tesla vehicles that used its autopilot drive assistance systems -- a system allowing some driving tasks to be handled by the car, letting drivers keep their hands off the wheel for extended periods.

Eight of those crashes, according to The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, resulted in 10 deaths.

Streaming? Well, maybe there were texting and other digital needs at play here for those in control of these vehicles. Or drinking that cold brew and gazing comfortably into space.

Maybe some good, perfect TV content can wait while autopilot car mechanisms are perfected. And, if hacked? Now I got you thinking. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.