LA Times reports that two shows in the upcoming Fox schedule (Fringe and Dollhouse) will cut the amount of commercial time in half. True: a) it’s a gimmick to lure curious viewers, b) nobody watches commercials anymore anyway because they get their TV from BitTorrent or off their PVR, and c) advertising creep has led to advertising fatigue, meaning the messages don’t hold the impact they used to do anyway.

Still – fewer commercials is always good. I have no problem with advertising per se, but TV advertising is so ubiquitous, so offensively dumbed-down and so annoying that it’s no wonder people will do whatever they can to avoid them. Of course, it’s no surprise that Fox calls these shows “Remote-free TV” — the idea being that there are so few commercials, it’s easier to just sit through them and not change the channel. If only flipping were the only obstacle facing the efficacy of TV ads, they might be onto something. If only.