WHEN television was first introduced in the 1920s, many people feared its moving pictures would mark the death of sound-only radio.
Statistics show that in the US, production of TV sets skyrocketed by the middle of the century as consumers placed them top of their list of "must-have" items. In 1953, 7.3 million black-and-white TVs rolled off the production line.
And yet despite the fears, radio survived, growing side by side with TV. From the production of 1.3 million units in 1924, output rose to 13.36 million radios in 1953. Today, people are still listening to the radio, especially those on the move, even though the option of mobile TV is now available.
However, the threat that TV poses to movies is even greater.
After World War II, TV reached Japan. The famous Japanese crime novel series "Kindaichi" has documented how big-screen actors began fretting about their future as the small-screen craze gripped households.
Thai actors were lucky in that few of Thailand's consumers were wealthy enough to buy a TV set back then. Popular actors could still hold as many as 10 film contracts at a time, as cinemas sprang up, particularly in the provinces where overheads were low.
But these days the threat from TV is on the increase, thanks to an entertainment value that is no longer limited to soap operas and game shows. During the World Cup, for example, Major Cineplex Group - which controls 70 per cent of big screens nationwide - predicted that cinema ticket sales would fall by at least 10 per cent.
Another group with reasons to stay away from the cinema is bad drivers - at least in Phuket. While police in Hat Yai and Songkhla have opted to punish traffic law violators with a sermon at the local temple, police in Phuket are herding miscreants into a theatre.
Motorcyclists who fail to wear helmets are required to spend an hour attending a lecture on traffic rules and watching a film on gruesome road accidents.
Free movies are great, but most of us would prefer to choose what we want to see - and a flick about carnage on the roads isn't many people's idea of a good night out.
I guess the graphic scenes will kill their appetite for films for some time. And where else can they turn to for entertainment. Yes, it's definitely TV.
Cinema-owners should also be quaking at the craze for new-generation LCD TVs - LG Electronics (Thailand) sells about 35,000 units per month alone. Of course, many buyers will be replacing their old set, which will be destined for the junkyard.
So, while TVs might be killing the cinema, they are definitely killing the environment.