ASSESSMENT OF INTERNET INFILTRATION AND THE ACCEPTION OF TELEVISION STREAMING AMONG STAKEHOLDERS IN SOUTH-WEST NIGERIA

Background to the Study: Numerous breakthroughs have resulted from advances in computer technology, particularly with the introduction of the Internet. The growth of the Internet is transforming a variety of global industries, including the media sector. Television streaming, the process by which television stations make media material available online, is one of the cutting-edge ways the Internet is being used in the media sector. According to Okoro's definition of technological convergence (2016, p. 4), it is "the ongoing advancement in media technology aimed at bringing about a blend in technologies in the process of message transmission." This implies that computer and television technology will eventually converge, giving rise to television streaming. Gerbarg and Noam (2022) state that television streaming is the "ultimate digital convergence media combining together television, telecommunications, the Internet, and computer applications" on page xxi.

Before the Internet, television stations were constrained by geographic restrictions and the power of the airwaves. Because not all viewers were able to express their ideas or opinions about events occurring in the world, the feedback mechanism for television viewers was also either constrained or delayed. Additionally, viewers of television had access to a restricted number of programs at a certain time. As a result, television viewers often had a small selection of available shows to choose from, and there was no other way to catch up on a show they had missed. However, since they are not constrained by on-air signal or coverage, television streaming offers media companies a venue to reach a bigger audience. As a result, viewers from different locations may access the internet material of television stations. The audience has something to gain by viewing television shows online as well. With the invention of television streaming, viewers may watch their preferred television shows from anywhere in the globe as long as they have an Internet connection. Video on Demand (VoD) television watching on the Internet allows viewers to catch up on missed favorite shows, which lowers the frequency with which viewers miss television programs. The ability to watch television programs while on the go raises television to the level of a mobile media. Viewers may access a television station's website using a laptop or a mobile device.

Ikpe & Olise (2020) and Livingstone (2021) noted that television streaming broadens the area of television coverage and eliminates the geographic signal restriction of a television station by making way for an ever larger audience that transcends limitations of location. Because its feedback mechanism fosters more interaction between media professionals and media audiences, television streaming must be adopted immediately when the media audience migrates from conventional media to the new one. However, Mirza and Beltrán (2020) claimed that high-speed internet technologies should be in place to improve individual usage for a seamless streaming experience. This is accomplished by compressing streaming media apps to work with the end users' Internet access. This suggests that streaming services take the end customers' access to and quality of their Internet link into account.

According to Vliet (2022), the Internet is a worldwide network that allows millions of users to exchange data with a number of networks connected to a single organization. According to Pratama and Al-Shaikh (2022), the Internet is also the "symbol of technological age" (p. The widespread use of the Internet in the twenty-first century has not only led to changes in the media sector but also in every other area of the business. With the invention of radio and television streaming, it may be claimed that Internet technology has altered the face of broadcasting. Broadcasters started streaming their programs online in an effort to take advantage of the Internet's technical advancements and to keep up with the audience's transition to new media. Broadband Internet access must be widely available and reasonably priced in order for viewers to watch television programs online in sync (Gerbarg & Noam, 2022). Although this could be taken for granted in the wealthy nations of the West, for instance, it raises concerns about the infrastructures set up to improve Internet access and connection in a nation like Nigeria.

Internet penetration is the ratio of persons who have access to the Internet to those who do not, which is a key factor in determining how extensively the entire amount of broadband bandwidth is used. Additionally, it gauges the expansion of Internet access in a certain geographic area. According to statistics, more people in Nigeria have access to the Internet than there were 15 years ago. For instance, according to reports from Internet World Stats (2016), Internet Society (2016), and Premium Times (2016), the number of Internet users climbed to 93,524,398 as of August 2016 across both GSM and CDMA networks. Internet users may therefore access the Internet via either the fixed Internet known as the CDMA supplied by telecommunication providers or the mobile Internet platform. Internet users with established Internet infrastructures may now utilize tablets, laptops, smart phones, and other mobile devices with Internet capabilities to access the Internet.

However, research has revealed that respondents' age, education, income, work position, gender, and marital status are among the demographic factors that influence their usage of the Internet and acceptance of television streaming. This prompted Yang and Kang (2016) and Penard, Poussing, Mukoko, and Tamokwe (2017) to conclude that the young, educated, and employed are the main Internet users since they are assumed to have the computer skills required for Internet usage and the acceptance of television streaming. Adopters of television streaming, to some degree, must also have the technical know-how required to operate computer equipment before choosing to watch television programs online. The majority of Internet information is in the English language, according to Viard and Economides (2021), therefore it will be more appealing to people who are educated and can understand the language. The so-called "digital divide," or "the gap between those who have effective access to and use the potential of IT and those who do not," is a result of the demographic factors (Niehaves & Plattfaut, 2015).

Some of the factors affecting Internet use in Nigeria, according to the Internet Society, Nigeria Chapter (2016) and West (2015), include a lack of technical know-how, the high cost of purchasing computer equipment, the high cost of Internet subscriptions, and a negative attitude brought on by security-related problems like cybercrimes when using the Internet. According to West (2015), economic levels are obstacles to using the Internet, and unless low-income workers have access to free goods and affordable gadgets, they may not be able to do so. While data subscriptions may be available, they may not be utilized for television streaming due to the large quantity of data required to view live programs on the Internet. On the other side, costly gadgets and high data costs may work against high income earners' use of the Internet.