The BBC has dominated television forever, but now YouTube has overtaken it. It's changing who we are, says Mark Smith

Don’t know about you but I am a proud member of a group called The Late Majority. The Late Majority is a term used to describe people who take their time to adopt tech like the latest satnavs or smartphones or whatever. Other people rush in and spend time and money on new stuff; we sit back and wait to see what works. I know that one day, for example, I will no longer be able to put off the inevitable and will have to make a decision: VHS or Betamax. But don’t rush me.

There are other groups besides The Late Majority. The Early Adopters, for example, are the ones that are first with the 3D, Google-enable specs and so on, and the Laggards are last of all and only adopt innovations when they absolutely have to and may never adopt them. I met a fine example of a Laggard at a party last Saturday: a delightful gentleman, not much older than me, who does not have a smartphone or even an email and still makes his TV choices by circling programmes in The Radio Times. It’s probably why he’s happy.

But I tell you who I also met at the party: a redoubtable nonagenarian who told me about all the apps she has on her phone – it was she who ordered the taxis on Uber – because there comes a time with all innovations when pretty much everyone is using them because they’re convenient or cheap or free and the other options are just more complicated, too much hassle or just don’t fit in with how we live our lives. It’s at this stage that you can end up dealing with some profound cultural, social and economic consequences, not always happy ones.

I think, if we’re not there already, we’re close to reaching that stage with the apps and websites........

© Herald Scotland