The future looks Bright

       

Bright Future

Technology has advanced at astonishing rates, making daily living easier, making communication cheaper and simpler. With the growing popularly and accessibility of Smartphone’s, tablets and computers, it’s like the Internet is everywhere. As technology developers so are the technology skills of the consumers. Each day more new content online is being created. With the rapped development of technology and boundless creativity, the possibilities of the future are endless.

            New forms of education have flourish through this period of Internet creativity and technology accessibility. Sites like Khan Academy have emerged, which have ample amounts of videos varying in different topics like Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Personal Finance, etc. Salman Khan in a TedX presentation, emphasis the power and influence Khan Academy can have in a teaching system. My two favorite examples are, 1) Teachers being able to track students development and being able to see in which areas specific students are excelling and struggling at and 2) students can learn at their own pace, with out the pressure of keeping up with others students or being held back. This is not to say that classrooms teachers will become obsolete. I believe that it’s important that different fields adapt as technology develops and becomes more intertwine with our daily lives. Perhaps the role of teacher standing in front of a classroom and “teaching to a group” of students is not the answer. Maybe through technology and convergence programs like Institute of Play, where they believe  “The real work of a 21st century education is to spark the passion for lifelong learning that our kids will need to navigate their way to a promising tomorrow”.

            With the accessibly of the technology and the interment people are creating content at an astonishing rate. The ability of creating and share content endlessly and in a cheap manor has given rise user generated content and Mass Amateurization. Technology and the Internet have granted the everyday day person the ability to voice their opinion and share there lives online. This phenomenon is the reason why Content Generating and Sharing Sites like Facebook, Instragram, twitters, etc are so popular. They let people interact with one another in a simple and cheap way. Clay Shirky would argue, “Most-user generated content isn’t ‘content’ at all, in the sense that of being created for general consumption, any more than a phone call between you and a relative is “family” generated content” (85), and I agree. But I think this “family” generated content serves greater importance to the person sharing it than the 3^rd person viewer. This amateur generated content may lack interest or professionalism but it doesn’t stun creativity. Much like rather side with In Henry Jenkins. Jenkins “Why Heather Can Write” illustrates how fans and fan fiction can great a place where people can meet and create content based on a favorite show, movie, book, story, etc. This illustrates the true power and benefit of mass Amateurization, the power of creating continent, which is what makes social interaction on the Internet so appealing.           

Self Learner

Some people are spectacle of the future and others are excited. The Internet and technology are tools that have made our lives easier. But they are just that, tools, they are not to blame for any negative or positive effect they may posses in technology. Because they are only tools, the responsibility of how they are used the content created is solely to the people who use it. With the massive amount of content created by people, Shirky argues, “has created a filtering problem vastly larger than we had with traditional media” (99). Although this is true, Mass Amateurization effect creates more of a demand from Professionals and us as content creators and consumers. People have to become their own guardians, dictating right from wrong and choose where they receive their news and information. I’m all for people being their own gate keepers and questioning the integrity of the content they consume.

Reading is still Very important. A deep appreciation of reading and Learning through reading has to continue to be instilled into future generations.  Much of the adversity and our inability to properly resolve problems come from people’s apathy and lack of reading. When it comes to news and learning, too much is dependant on what we get from the television. Peter Finch, A character in the film Network (1976), goes on a rampage speech attacking viewers for their simple-minded naiveness.  Reading and learning allows the mind to develop and handle more complex and challenging thoughts and ideas. A person who reads is a self-learner. This same person has to be thought to questions the content of which he reads his information’s from, being his own gatekeeper. The accessibility of technology and the Internet have made our lives much easier, but have also demanded more from us. It demands us to keep up with technology and to continue to grow as it does. Technology and knowledge will not stop growing or expanded and nether should people.

My goal is to inspire and challenge people. To create content that will require my audience to think, use prior acquired knowledge, get emotionally involved, and appeal to their better nature, in order to inspire them to achieve what ever their minds in vision. Convergence Culture, Storytelling and Technology are essential to Human life, they help people communicate and make sense of the world around them. But they are all tools, tools that if miss used can hold back the growth our civilization. As the 1^st generation of Internet users, I don’t think the mass majority of people don’t realize the potential the interment has. The future looks bright, but it is what we make of it.

Citation

Shirky, Clay. Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing without Organizations. New York: Penguin, 2008. Print.

Pavlik, John V., and Shawn McIntosh. Converging Media: A New Introduction to Mass Communication. 4nd ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2014. Print.

Jenkins, Henry. Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York: New York UP, 2006. Print.

Transmedia Storytelling

In order to understand Multimedia and Transmedia, you have to understand how they work individually and how they collaborate with one another. We participate in a profit driven economy, in which making a lot of money is the main objective. The larger the amount of people who gain interest in your product the larger the income opportunity is. Understanding the relationship and difference between Multimedia and Transmedia can help you properly market your product. In order to understand the differences and the way they interact. I will give examples of different stories, products and themes that have been successful through Multimedia and Transmedia.

 Content connected through Transmedia Storytelling

Multimedia is the form in which your product is displayed, text, audio or video/film/commercial. An example of Multimedia includes Apples billboard advertisement for their new product, the 30-second commercials on television or Youtube, articles in newspapers and magazines. Apple focuses on the simplicity of their ads and their product in their advertisement. The Picture like billboards is a testament to how they “transmit culture by the way they show it, and which emotions they stir” (Pavlik and Mclntosh).

Samsung has been making a push for consumers within the last couple of years. Their approach of Multimedia advertisement has been against their major competitor, Apple. “Samsung continues to devote an embarrassingly large amount of their advertising not to their own products but to Apple's” (Ritchie). Samsung is sending a message that they been doing what apple is starting to do now, which the launch of their new Iphone 6, in the attempt to validate them selves and win over Apple consumers. 

There use of Lebron James as an Advocate for Samsung is an example of Transmedia. Samsung is attempting to reach more audiences through the popularity and views that Lebron James attracts. Apple and Samsung use different approaches when advertising their products, in order to evoke emotion and creation consumption for their products. It gives their projected audience an image of them as a company, as a story and the community they’re being a part of as they purchase these products.  

Harry Potter 

Transmedia is presenting a story or products through different media platforms, like: television, social media, books, movies, and comics, etc. A story that is presented through these different platforms is an example of Transmedia Storytelling.  “A Transmedia story unfolds across multiple media platforms, with each new text making a distinct and valuable contribution to the whole” (Jenkins 98) Jenkins explains that the story is able to reach different audiences that use different platforms. The story or product may also reach the same audience but displayed differently in a different Medium. Harry Potter is excellent example of this Phenomenon. The Story of “Harry Potter” lives through different platforms, but all represent the same content. There are Books, Movies, Games, An amusement park, online communities, etc. This allows the story of Harry Potter to live and be shared through these different platforms. Which also allows Harry Potter to remain relevant and ultimately apart of our culture. The goal of any Trans Media marketing campaign is to remain as popular and relevant as possible.

Fans Waiting on line for new Harry Potter Book Release 

Fans Reacting and Purchasing new Harry Potter Book

Using Multimedia and Transmedia successfully will allow a story or product to be a marketing success. The benefit of using Multimedia is that you are projecting your product to possible consumers through a specific advertise form. By incorporating Transmedia Storytelling your product is reaching different audience through different media platforms. Many of these platforms are: Facebook, twitter, blogs, movies, books, television, comic books, costumes, toys etc. Spreading a story through these different platform gives fans/viewers a place to interact and share there likes and dislikes about show. This leads to creating a community of fans around the Transmedia story. Fans of popular television shows can interact on Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, Websites, etc. Jenkins argues, “viewers get even more out of the experience if they compare notes and share resources than if they try to go it alone” (97). 

Football vs Breaking Bad

This form of fan participation is key to keeping a shows relevant and their fans loyal.  With the variation of DVR, it’s quite a demand for shows to command viewer’s immediate loyalty. Many shows are judged on the turnout of viewers they create during the release of their new episodes. And with DVR they have to compete with different forms of entertainment that may be showing at the same time. It’s all about the amount of viewers you can attract and maintain loyal.

Understanding Transmedia Storytelling and Multimedia is essential for anyone who is trying to get their product viewed and purchased.  Different marketing campaigns have different goals and therefore target different audiences. An up and coming filmmaker, author, storyteller has to consider how their stories content and grow and be expanded through the different media platforms. Marketing campaigns need to understand the advantages and disadvantages of using the Multimedia and Transmedia.

Citation:

Ritchie, Rene. "Samsung Tells Everyone IPhone 6 Plus Is Here, Can Dump Their Galaxy Notes and Switch over Now." Imore.com. 15 Sept. 2014. Web. <http://www.imore.com/samsung-tells-everyone-iphone-6-plus-here-can-dump-their-galaxy-notes-and-switch-over-now>.

Pavlik, John V., and Shawn McIntosh. Converging Media: A New Introduction to Mass Communication. 2nd ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2011. Print.

Jenkins, Henry. Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York: New York and London. 2006.

Post 4- The Future Is Near

"The point of convergence is the empowerment of people and the dynamics of convergence are
enabling people to take control over their relationship with businesses and with media."

-Nigel Morris, Convergence is Shaping the Future of Communications.
`
As the future of convergence approaches us, we are able to quickly put down old habits and get accustomed to the ever-changing outlets of media and communications. Through our understanding of Guy Debord's "Society of a Spectacle" and how when the commodity has taken over our social life, such as social media, television, radio(which is dying because of convergence), etc, it becomes the spectacle. In Convergence is Shaping the Future of Communications, Nigel Morris describes the future of convergence:

"In a convergent world, no person and no touchpoint exist in isolation. Everything is interconnected.

In a convergent world, every action can potentially have an effect on everything else. Everything is interdependent.

In a convergent world, it is impossible to keep things separate, or to control the way that a consumer interacts with a company. Everything is transparent."

The ideas formed years ago, that there wouldn't be multiple media platforms but rather a single source, have been proven false. Instead of a one-sided media world, there is a transparency between the people and their connection to media, allowing correlation between the media and society.

“Correlation refers to the ways in which media interpret events and issues and ascribe meanings that help individuals understand their roles within the larger society and culture… By correlating one’s views with other groups or preconceived notions of general public opinion, the media can help maintain social stability…”(Pavlick, McIntosh, 27.)

Since newspapers gained popularity and emergence of technology, information has been easily obtainable, especially in the most POPULAR source of media today, the Internet. Clay Shirkey, author of Here Comes Everyone, begins chapter 3 describing a time when USA TODAY’s birth nearly threatened old- time newspaper positions. Shirkey DESCRIBES, “The principle threat to the Richmound Daily News, and indeed to all newspapers small and large, was not competition from other newspapers but radical changes with the overall ecosystem of information.”(Shirkey, 56) 

The competition is still, if not more of a concern as we move into a converging media world.  Mass ameturization has developed has given unprofessionals a role in delivering information to audiences. The Internet has allowed for instant and constant communication throughout the world, and has adequately combined all other mediums into one - a feat that was never quite accomplished before.

Shirky, Clay. “Everyone Is a Media Outlet.” Here Comes Everybody: the Power of Organizing without Organizations. New York: Penguin, 2008. Print.

 Pavlick, McIntosh. Converging Media, 27

The Future of Convergence

Chinwe A. Onuoha

November 25, 2014

Convergence

Professor Doris Cacoilo

Post Four

The Future of Convergence

             The future of convergence will continue to consist of all “computing, telecommunications and media in a digital environment,” (Pavlik, 8) because the evolution of technology and mass communications has transformed into a phenomenon that looks impossible to live without. Everyone seems to be glued to their iPhones, tablets and other hand held devices because with just one click, they’re able to get all the information that they need. The idea of having a fast and convenient alternative to getting news seems reasonable, but there are a couple of downfalls that exist due to the convergence of media and how we receive it. 

            For 10 decades, Morse code was used as a form of communication, especially during war, but at the turn of the 20^th century, it officially went silent because it was replaced by other technologies like the telephone, which was much faster, simpler to use and practical because you didn't have to wait a long time before you heard a message from the receiving end. After the telephone was invented, another fascinating phenomenon that sparked media sound waves all over the U.S. was the radio because Americans were able to connect with the President Roosevelt on an intimate level while they sat in the comfort of their own living room. Besides the fireside chats that helped FDR become such a popular figure in politics and in the hearts of millions of Americans, the invention of the television changed the world of media around in ways that have never been imagined because it allowed people to see what was really happening around them, as opposed to listening to them.

Picture curtesy of "The Daily Twitch"

            Plus, new media powerhouses were established to the American people to choose from, which didn't spark too much competition because there were only three of them – American Broadcasting Company (ABC), Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) and National Broadcasting Company (NBC). The big three, which is what they are often called, are now in the midst of a raging war between other media corporations that are on television and online because everyone wants their daily dose of new as soon as they press their finger against their hand held devices.

            Not only are big news corporations on television with new emerging ones such as Aljazeera or CNN, but they’ve developed a new digital world that can only survive by how many people read the content that’s being published on their page and how many times it’s being shared amongst friends on social media. This creates more competition amongst the news corporations that exist now because they’ll have to figure out a way to keep their readership with material that will keep them engaged, informed and on their toes. That is one of the reasons why they have integrated an interactive experience on their sites so that their supporters will be able to continue to talk about it with each other, which would propel them to make their own “stories” or assumptions of how current news events, such as how Darren Wilson’s indictment raises more issues about the war between police brutality and black men, for example.

            As groundbreaking news stories such as that continue to run through every news media outlet like wild fire, people are able to create their own “opinion pieces” on blog sites, in interviews, on the comment sections underneath the articles that they read online and by making videos on Youtube, Vine, Instagram. When people do this, not only are they creating their own news for the public to engage in with a touch of one button, but they also

Curtesy of "The Business Insider"

Curtesy of "The Business Insider"

have the freedom to ask questions and to present issues that aren’t being answered on mainstream news –which creates an intersection between technology and story telling. However, there is another issue that arises between what seems to be a “seamless crossing.”

Since GE, News Corp, Disney, Viacom, Time Warner and CBS serve as the six primary owners of most of the networks that a lot of people watch, the issue that many people face is that they are being told the same type of “story” so that they’ll be able to satisfy the political agenda of the corporation that they are under. The subject of inaccuracy and bias becomes an issue because journalism is supposed to be objective and fair, but with this knowledge, people can stand up and try to fight against these issues so that these issues wont serve as a threat to us in the future.

                                                                   Works Cited 

1. Pavlik, John V., and Shawn McIntosh. Converging Media: A New Introduction to Mass Communication. New York: Oxford UP, 2011. Print.

Converging is Merging..

I think the future of convergence is going have us merging more things together.  Technology has become more portable and more interactive and reactive to us.  It has also caused technologies to merge together.  Back then, cellphones were only able to call people and play the infamous snake game, but today things are much different.  We can text, email, browse the web and interact with people all over the world from our handheld cell phone.  We can go online and browse the web from our gaming systems.  

With all these new advances around us, it leads to changes around us.  Marketing, branding, ad placement have all been changed in our new technological atmosphere.  I think cellphones are the key to reaching the most amount of people.  Getting your content accessible from a cellular module is key to survival for a company. Back then, companies promoted on billboards, newspapers, and television.  Cellphones have lowered the viewership of these commodities for a multitude of reasons.

If you're walking down the street, chances are you're looking down at your cellphone like most people do.

You can miss that billboard ad because of it.  That company never gets your business and in turn loses money.  People don't have to buy newspapers to receive news anymore.  There are so many news sites on the web with up to date information, that newspapers are like dinosaurs in the media landscape.  You can now watch television shows, sports, movies and more from your mobile device.  It wasn't like this years prior.  With you watching television on your phone, this takes away viewership of live television ads.

U2 noticed the power of a cellphone and tried to cash in on it, but failed miserably.

Remember how in early September of this year, U2's new album "Songs Of Innocence" appeared in everyone's iTunes library randomly?  I remember Facebook and Twitter being in an uproar about this.  They didn't listen to U2 and they surely didn't want their music in their library.  U2 noticed that to reach the most amount of fans is to get into their mobile device.  Unfortunately for them, U2 isn't as popular as it used to be.  

Media must converge to be competitive in 2014.  For instance, I read Sports Illustrated.  It's a weekly magazine about sports.  When you subscribe to the magazine, you also get a jacket with your teams logo and colors on it.  The subscription prices are 28 issues for $26.00 or 56 issues for $39.00.  The free jacket makes the subscription more than worth it.  The jacket could probably sell for maybe $30.00 at least.  The magazines are just icing on the cake.  It inclines you to buy the magazine.  Without the jacket, the magazine would be way harder to sell.  Who knows how many subscriptions they would have never gotten if they never partnered with a clothing company and sold jackets with the magazine.  

Post 4: Future of Convergence

            The future of technology is rapidly changing. Through the power of media, the world we live in has become completely digitized. Radical developments in the ways we consume have shaped the economy and various societies. Of the utmost importance however, is mobile media.

            In whatever form this comes to be, mobile technology is the future of convergence. We live in a world where virtually anything we need is at the tip of our fingers. The concept of consumerism has changed in large part due to not only social media, “It is ironic that we have a world of information at our fingertips through the Internet and greater communicative power than ever before for the public, yet we often squander it on pop culture trivia and an incessant need to keep in contact with others.” (Pavlik 214) but the Internet’s availability as a whole. People are able to shop, watch their favorite shows or movies, communicate with people on the other side of the world, or simply just share their thoughts.

            Corporations have capitalized off this notion, and began catering to this shift in consumerism. One particular example in regard to gaming is Madden NFL. The game began as a 2D experience on low quality gaming systems. However, over the years it has began catering to a more general audience. You no longer need a major gaming system in order to play it. Although it is still advertised traditionally via television and print, it is now largely advertised online.

            The game has taken on a life of its own. There are ads and promotional trailers found on sites like YouTube, and also largely endorsed on social media. The introduction of online gaming also plays a very big factor. In fact, being able to compete with someone digitally enhances the interaction of the fanbase.

           

Recently, the developers of Madden have released a mobile version of the game for free. For a free download, users are allowed most freedoms they would from the console version. However, to gain the same console features like better players and features the user must pay money in order to achieve the same type of interaction.

            Although the game is advertised as “free,” the aim is that the user will make in game purchases. Thus, the user is influenced to buy more. This is just an example of what convergence has become. You take something like Madden, which is a traditional console game, and expose it on television through NFL games, and mostly on social media.

            The future of convergence lies in mobile devices, where that will take us no one knows. Society was dumbfounded by touch screen technology. But soon the Internet will be plugged into our brain like The Matrix. Laugh now, but we’ll see.

Citation

Pavlik, John V., and Shawn McIntosh. Converging Media: A New Introduction to Mass Communication. 4nd ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2014. P 214