The escalating value of long-form content may be best validated by the number of non-traditional players increasingly not just looking to acquire it, but produce it. Netflix continues to invest more there. Hulu has made strides. Amazon wants a piece of the action. YouTube has all its channels. Now, Microsoft is making a play to feed original stuff through what was once just a video-game console.

As instant replay began trickling into sports, naysayers argued it would slow down the game and violate the tradition of humans making the calls themselves. But there were just too many errors costing teams big time for leagues to hold out any longer on using it to make decisions. What a great move it's been to ignore the cynics. It makes viewing games so much more interesting.

It's a perpetual question the news media grapples with: how many Americans really want more information on foreign affairs? With its acquisition of Current TV, Al Jazeera will have a chance to stake ground as a leader in not only reporting international news, but offering coverage that tries to link what's happening globally to domestic affairs. While the existing Al Jazeera English has betrayed little biased reporting, Americans would be right to have some queasiness about Al Jazeera's domestic expansion, which comes courtesy of Current co-founders Gore and partner Joel Hyatt. Even if its journalism proves outstanding, Al Jazeera is …

It doesn't seem fair. How come our U.K. "allies" get to watch the full season of the enthralling drama "Downton Abbey" before sharing it with us? Shouldn't this "special relationship" between our two countries engender more equality, bringing the show to the U.S. much sooner?