Media in the Online Age
What has been the impact of the internet on media production?
Media production has transformed in recent years, with the majority of old media like newspapers, films, music migrating online.
Firstly newspapers have made the transition from traditional print based media to online; this has had a significant impact on the very survival of this traditional news based institution. As Clay Shirky suggested media would eventually migrate online, this is a notable assumption that is supported with the evidence that in contemporary society most people are internet connected either through computers or smartphones, which makes access an easy and quick resource. This also means that audiences have the opportunity, to contribute online, which has led to the change in their position, from consumers, to producers.
The film industry is another good example, of how the internet has had an impact on production; Netflix in particular has made the tremendous leap into the online age of film, and has made substantial profit from streaming films into the homes of subscribers. This streaming service comes at a fixed monthly price, and offers an unlimited number of films available to customers, which can be downloaded through game consoles, laptops, or just about anything internet connected. It also has zero distribution costs, as the products are transferred via the internet for free; this is the key point about this online company. Profits are high because production and distribution services are completely cut out, and only payment for the copyright of the films is needed, therefore the revenues are extremely high, as long as there is a market. This relates well to the long tail theory.
With the free accessibility of the internet, positive and negative aspects appear in regard to ownership, one example is that creative commons licences protects intellectual property, but this still allows others to remix the material.
Piracy is an important issue that surrounds that internet with controversy. It contributes with substantial losses, which prevents the companies that produced material from receiving the full amount of funds. Individuals sometimes expect things to be free; an example may be that a positive outcome of piracy is that the individual is so eager to hear their favourite artist’s new album that they illegal download it, but also buy it once it’s been officially released. In addition, some individuals may want to illegally download music to see if they like all the songs on an album, they then may continue on to buy this. On the opposite side on the coin, some people generally expect music to be free, and don’t understand the reason why they have to pay, if they can find it online for free. This also saves them from traditional going to a shop and then purchasing the CD, then downloading it onto their computer, which is a lengthy process, instead of downloading things at home.
In addition, people no longer need to be computer geniuses to find out how to download music, films, games etc., because it’s very simple and quick. The music industry suggests that every single illegal purchase would have been bought otherwise; I find this assumption hard to accept. I think that illegal downloads, whether it be, music, films or games etc. are done so because it’s easy and primarily because it’s free. In the current economic climate some people cannot spend their money on luxuries like music and illegal means is a way of combating this obstacle.
