Each week Adam Frucci takes a closer look at the latest gadget buzz in his column, Shift.

If I had my druthers, I would be able to watch any show, at any time. Add to that any movie. Yeah, I'd like a set-top box that would allow me to browse or search through a catalog of every show that's ever aired, by season, and choose which episode to watch, then have it start playing in clear, digital quality. Immediately. Same with every movie ever released on DVD. Sound far-fetched? It isn't. The technology is already there to completely change the television experience into this user-friendly dream, but what's a dream for viewers is a nightmare to broadcasters. However, the move towards on demand television has already begun, and eventually, after much resistance, I'm certain we'll be enjoying some version of that scenario.

With their advertising dollars already being threatened by DVRs that allow viewers to fast-forward through commercials at the touch of a button, networks are wary of giving people even more freedom. However, HBO, freed from the shackles of advertisers, offers its popular On Demand service, allowing customers to watch most HBO shows and movies at any time at the press of a button. Being able to browse through entire seasons of all of their shows, starting a season from the beginning even when it's halfway over, is amazingly liberating.

One can already see how this move from broadcaster control to user control has happened with music. When was the last time you requested a song on the radio? Now, rather than having to sit and listen to the incessant yammering of some DJ while waiting for that new hit single to play, you can simply head to iTunes, plunk down 99 cents, and listen to it whenever you want. iTunes has made the move into TV shows, but the limited quality and playability of the files offered keeps them from changing how people watch in any meaningful way. This is the same reason movie-downloading services such as Vongo are doomed for failure; no one really wants to watch TV or movies on a computer or iPod. What we need is a model that's as simple, intuitive, and convenient as iTunes is for music, but moved away from the computer and onto the television.

Why don't we see more networks embracing the HBO on-demand model? Because without the ads running during breaks in the programs, the networks will go broke. There's no successful, proven business model out there to make broadcasters money without traditional commercial breaks, but HBO's success implies its model could be used by other channels with positive results. What if, rather than getting a slew of channels you don't want, you just select the ones you're really interested in? Imagine, rather than paying $70 a month for 500 channels you never watch, paying $70 for 15 channels with programming you actually like and can watch whenever you want. It might not be what everyone would want, but why not give them the option?

Combine this idea with the rumored Netflix set-top box, and you have my dream scenario. Just think about the convenience of being able to download any movie from Netflix's catalogue to your TV whenever you want. If this happened, I would already have a good chunk of my wish fulfilled, as Netflix offers TV on DVD in addition to movies. The missing piece of the puzzle would be new shows, and if networks figured out a way to make money or include advertising in this model, everything would be complete.

We have the technology to do all of this right now; the only thing keeping it from happening is a clear business model. And while the networks aren't all that excited about change, having gotten comfortable in the past 60 years or so with the current model of TV advertising, the more of a taste people get for on-demand viewing via HBO, Netflix, DVR, and TV on DVD, the more pressure there will be to shift TV to an on-demand model. It's only a matter of time.— A.F.