Any time a new technology comes out (think tape recorders, VCRs, even YouTube), fear and the exaggeration of lost profits are always the first reactions. Most recording, film, and television industry players jump right on the cease-and-desist bandwagon, practicing their favorite hobby: tossing around lawsuits. I’m not saying they shouldn’t protect intellectual and creative property, but history proves that they always underestimate the promotional value of these new technologies.

Take Acceptable TV, a sketch comedy program I came across on VH1 a couple of weeks ago. Not only is VH1 broadcasting the program on their cable network, they’re also airing it online at VH1.com and on the Acceptable.tv website. VH1 is embracing the Web and all the benefits it offers as an additional avenue for promoting their products. They’re also taking full advantage of the Web’s interactivity by inviting viewers to vote for their favorite sketches. The top two come back the following week as new episodes and the rest of the program is filled out with new content. To top it off, users can submit their own sketches for viewers to vote on, and the winner gets aired on the next show.

Acceptable.tv—with its blend of YouTube and traditional broadcast, plus a dash of reality show voting and the chance to be on TV—is just one way that online video programming is evolving.

Internet video networks are popping up all over the place. There’s KITE.TV, a site that allows users to create their own TV shows, instantly broadcast them to “channels,” and publish the content to websites, blogs, social networks, and mobile phones. Then there’s GoFish.com, which combines user-generated content with branded programming. And check out Sara’s post from April 9th about Magnify.net, which also lets users create and populate their own channels.

It’s already crowded out there, and some of these networks (if not all) may not be around in six months. But there’s no denying that more and more people are making the Web their primary stop for information, communication, and entertainment. Fighting—instead of facing—this evolution is going to put a lot of people in the entertainment industry behind the curve, losing valuable market share as they ignore what their audiences obviously want.