Digital Media Convergence and Advertising

By Nali Lishomwa - 42345235

The Digital Convergence has been explained as the flow of content across multiple media platforms, the cooperation between multiplr media industries, and the migratory behaviour of audiences.(Jenkins 2006: 2)
A prime example of media convergence can be seen in the world of advertising. With the convergence of media advertisers are able to reach a wider audience by having their adverts appear in different forms of media.

Effective Advertising?

While billboards and the mesmerizing late night adverts still exist, in the digital age advertisers have had to adapt to the new world and have found ways to get their adds to the audience almost regardless of where the audience is and what the audience is doing.

Music has been a staple of advertising for years, with digital media convergence on the rise advertisers have fast started choosing one of three jingles to go with their ads, either a old yet familiar song that will remind us of “the good old days” and forever link the product with those happy times, a catchy new pop song which every teenager may already love or will love after hearing it, or a specific jingle that will have the user furiously searching “what is that song in ad XYZ?” on www.adtunes.com .
These catchy tunes end up being advertising in and of themselves as the audience describes the song as “that song from ad XYZ”, without knowing it when they tell their friends about the song or ad their friends then go and watch the ad, this brings in another audience member and they cycle keeps going and going, in a sort of Electronic Word-of-Mouth.(Phelps 2004)

Here we have an example of all three
Classic music:                                                           Modern Catchy music:

Custom Jingle:

However, this adding of popular, classical or custom jingles to songs doesn’t always work, its very possible to have songs that the audiences hates or has gotten tired of hearing, and this can have a negative effect on the product.

While adding music to a commercial has been going on for what seems like forever, with growing convergence a new form of advertising as risen, product placement in music videos, why stop at having a popular song in your advert, when you can have your product in a popular song. Music Videos such as Lady Gaga and Beyonces Telephone seemingly go out of their way to show off brand labels of products as a form of advertising. This is clear cut example of Digital Convergence as the brands being shown off are only just related to the song and an audience who might not have ever been exposed to these products are seeing them front and centre being used by their favourite artists.:

Here are some screen caps of the video in question in which you can clearly see full frame shots of nothing but brand products being shown off.

HP Envy, Beats by Dre and Plentyoffish all being advertised in a music video

Virgin Mobile and the LG slider being shown off by Lady Gaga.

The integration of internet access everywhere is arguably the biggest impact to advertising since print, content can sent and viewed by users pretty much all the time, with electronic word of mouth and viral marketing advertisers need only attract a small number of users who will then spread the word through convergent media technologies such as Facebook.

The image below shows the structure pass along emails while not fully relevant today it is still relevant in the sense that Facebook wall posts have taken over from the pass along email and the decision making steps are still the same.

With almost every electronic device having some sort of facebook integration, users see an advert that interests them or makes them laugh and they cant help but spread the word.
And unlike pass along emails which were complete private from user to user, Facebooks Wall posts are semi private in that only people who are deemed friends may see it, but every one of your friends will see.
As such one good wall post of an interesting advert can get a companies ad from 1,000 views to 1,000,000 simply by having friends of friends of friends keep viewing it and passing it on.

Another place where digital media convergence has really helped advertising is in the videogame industry.
There are two main models of videogame advertising, Advergames and in-game adverts.(Sadler et al 2008: 10), advergames are games that are commission by a marketer and designed solely to advertise a specific product. 

BMW M3 Challenge an Advergame for the BMW M3

Games such as BMW M3 Challenge are campaigns that will far outlast most conventional advertising campaigns as users can still download and play the game months even years after the games launch, BMW M3 Challenge is free to play so  users feel they are getting the good end of the deal.
Most advergames keep things as simple as possible as so to keep the user hooked, games such as the U.N Food Groups’ FreeRice, which is simply a multiple choice trivia game, in which the prize is grains of rice, has kept users entertained since 2007 in March 2012 alone over 310,000 grains of rice were won.(FreeRice)

In-Game advertising on the other hand, brings real world brands into the fictional universes of videogames. In-game ads themselves can be broken down into two groups, static and dynamic, static ads are ads that are hardcoded into the game and remain the same regardless of when you play the game.
Dynamic in-game adverts can be changed by the developers if the computer or console is connected to the internet as so to always have the newest products being shown off, or to target a specific demographic based on other information gathered.
In this way advertisers are using digital media convergence to reach the videogame playing audience that they might not have been able to reach before, for instance with me I never really watch TV or watch music videos, most of the advertising that I get is actually through Videogame websites or Videogames themselves.
Here is an example of in- game advertising in the game Need for Speed:

Real world brands being advertised in a Video Game

In Conclusion, the convergence of all these different media technologies has brought about a new age for advertisers as they find more creative ways to get their products seen.
Digital Media Convergence and nigh constant internet connectivity has made it almost too easy to get adverts out, the hard part is now making adverts that not only have lasting appeal but that are also capable of compelling the user.

References

Jenkins, H (2006), Convergence Culture: Where old and new media collide, NY University Press. 

Phelps, J(2004), Viral Marketing or Electronic Word-of-Mouth Advertising, in Journal of Advertising Research DOI: 10.1017/S0021849904040371

FreeRice, Total Donations by date (2012) <http://freerice.com/frmisc/totals>

Sadler, S , Kelly, TS and Rhind, A(2008), Advertising and Video Games, Havas Digital
Retrieved from: http://www.mediacontacts.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/mc_insight_advergaming.pdf

Digital media convergence and Online music videos.

Yuri Choi

Introduction

Digital convergence is a flow of new technologies merging with existing media; in other words, old media is transformed into new digital platforms as a method of enhancing the consumers’ experiences of various contents (Dwyer 2010, p. 4). According to Dwyer (2010, p.8-9), the effects of digital media convergence has propelled the social, cultural and economic change; moreover, it has re-shaped the features of many industries, especially, online music video media. The convergence of music and television industries of MTV has changed the way of listening to music (Temporal 2008, p.2), and new Internet devices and software programs such as Youtube and ITunes has spawned a resurgence of the music industry by playing music videos online (Hilderbrand 2007, p.48). Furthermore, as Jenkins (2006, p.3) mentions, the creation of such programs encouraged consumers’ active participation to exchange information and interact with each other; thus, various forms of music videos has been generated.

MTV, YouTube and music video industry

A music video is a short film illustrates a song with images on screen for artistic purposes (Temporal 2008, p.2); accordingly, it can be seen a convergence culture as audio and visual effects are combined. The first music video of MTV was The Buggles’ “Video killed the radio star”. Since MTV found the business potential of the new music form, many videos were highly released and MTV could be one of the leading global youth brands (Temporal 2008, p.5).

And, YouTube, founded in 2005, is a video sharing website and its exchangeable and documentary features have hugely impact on online music video industry. In the past, people could record a video, copy the tape with using a traditional media, video cameras and watch the video at home by television; however, free and limited uploading and sharing videos are appeared on the new media, YouTube. Also, it enables consumers to broadcast their life, share the videos and give some comments each other (Hiderbrand 2007, p.54). For example, people can rate the uploaded video by clicking ‘like’ or ‘dislike’ and add it into the favorite list if they like it; accordingly, the video can be played anytime on the list without the number of limitation. Consequently, those systems of YouTube expanded the growth of online music video business due to the fact that the music videos can be streamed easily by anyone according to individual taste. It was revolutionary because only television could decide when and how many times a music video would be played and the only thing that the audience could was to watch the videos literally in the past (Burgess & Green 2009, p.15).

MTV firstly converged television with the music video industry by combining the sound and visual effects of a song, then the Internet promoted the interaction between consumers and technologies (Temporal 2008, p.2-3). According to Dwyer (2010, p17), the creation of social networking websites can also explain the relationship between digital convergence and online music videos because it enables people to communicate easily. For example, a recommended music video from YouTube is uploaded on Facebook; then, a viewer makes some commentaries and evaluate by clicking ‘like’ button or not about the video. Also, the video can be shown on the viewer’s Facebook as well by just adding a tag. Consequently, the consumers can interact with each other about their preferences and swiftly share the opinions via digital convergent online music websites. Additionally, YouTube offers several charts of online music videos according to the popularity; so, people can also check the famous music videos recently. Here is a link shows the chart; http://www.youtube.com/channel/HCcCivR4nS5p0. In this sense, two converged features are shown because not only people can control the streaming of music videos online, but also can comprehend the trend of the industry on YouTube simultaneously.

Participatory Culture

The digital media convergence in this new era of music videos drives the birth of participatory media as well. It allows individuals to creatively express themselves within the online environment; accordingly, the borders that existed between the filmmaker, artist and the consumer have been blurred (Barker, D 2010, p.142). As a result, the digital media convergence boosts a huge increase of user-generated music videos and the creation of new music video styles. Lo-fi production is one of the common examples and it is used to give a home-made feeling and the artists emphasize the concept of the video rather than the video equipment and techniques (Barker, D. 2010, pp.143-144). The video “Here it goes again” of Ok Go directed by James Frost is an example of a music video uses the lo-fi techniques. It has now streamed 14,464,629 times (31 Aug, 2012) and it could be a huge sensation in the world because of YouTube’s popularity and its main structures of streaming music videos. Here is another music video "End love" of Ok Go represents lo-fi production.

As Hilderbrand (2007, p.54) states, online music videos would no longer have the ability to gain this level of attention on the Internet without the effects of digital media convergence. The convergence of media formats has also resulted in the creation of more innovative marketing methods of music videos (Dwyer 2010, pp.18-20) and Jason Mraz is one of artists used YouTube for marketing. Last April, Jason Mraz proposed a cover song contest to upload home-made videos of singing his songs for celebrating new released album, “Love is a four letter world”. It can be seen a convergence culture that the publicity activities of the music video and the interaction with music fans exist together by YouTube marketing.

According to YouTube Hot 100 list on 31 August, 2012, “Gangnam style” of PSY, a Korean singer, has firstly been lanked and played 77,875,884 times. The main reason why the unpopular Asian singer high-ranked over Justin Bieber, Katy Perry and Maroon 5 was the digital media convergence of YouTube. What is more, as Jenkins (2006, p.17) mentions, the convergence has affected to international and cultural exchanges and it presents the importance of new media platforms to develop the music video industry. 
 

 

Conclusion

Through analyzing the recent trends in music videos, it is clear that digital media convergence has become a huge phenomenon within the world of online music videos. New media platforms have changed the way we create, produce, record and consume music videos. It is also evident that the result of media convergence culture of music video industry is driven by the individual rather than the demands of record labels and television stations.

References

Barker, D. 2010, Internet saved the video star: The Renaissance of the Music video, Metro Magazine, Vol. 160, pp.142-144.

Burgess, J, Green, J 2009, Youtube: Online Video and Participatory Culture, Polity Press.

Dwyer, T 2010, Media convergence, McGraw Hill, Berksire.

Jenkins, H 2006, Introduction: Worship at the Altar of convergence, Convergence culture, New York University press, New York.

Hilderbrand, L 2007, ‘Youtube: Where cultural memory and copyright converge’, Film Quarterly, Vol. 61, pp. 48-57.

Temporal, P 2008, The branding of MTV: Will Internet kill the video star?, Jons Wiley & Sons, Singapore.

Images

MTV logo, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:MTV_Logo.svg
The buggles album, http://1to24fps.com/tag/canon-5d-markii/
YouTube logo, http://www.ijailbreak.com/jailbreak/ijailbreak-com-looking-for-youtube-producer/

 

Videos

Ok Go 2010, End love, <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2fpgpanZAw>

Psy 2012, Gangnam style, <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bZkp7q19f0>

 

 

 

 

 

 

Digital Media Convergence-Advertising and New Media- Mikaela Heise

Digital Media Convergence- Advertising and New Media.

Mikaela Heise: 42867584 

The contemporary mass proliferation of technological capabilities and the propagation of content consumption have provided the impetus for a new revolution of converged digital media. This digital media convergence is distinguished as the merging or coadaptation of multiple media forms, industries, cultures and practices towards performing similar tasks (Jenkins, 2006). Situated within the broader cultural context of an increasingly digitally reliant society, the paradigm shift towards new and converged media has exponentially challenged the comfortable practices of advertising through traditional media. In turn, a shift in the dynamics between producer and consumer has led to a new age of participatory communication and media.

Vast technological convergence within the past decade has resulted in an unprecedented era of pluralised media that retains an omnipresent power over social behaviour. This fragmented media has resulted in a “splintered audience” (Khamis, 2012) which in turn has contributed to the decline of the television, and the subsequent obsolescence of T.V advertising. As discussed by Negroponte the progression from the physicality of analogue media to the digital sphere has made way for “ubiquitous and user-friendly” technologies that give rise to a new found sense of consumer independence. The introduction of digital television enabled the personalisation of program schedules, which in turn gave a greater sense of empowerment to audiences to navigate around commercialised content. However, with the emergence of new technological practices such as smart phone technology and more capabilities online, the conventional use and appeal of the television for sole entertainment purposes were lost. With the dramatic widening of technological practices, consumers are finding themselves pulled taught between multiply platforms of digital engagement. Under particular scrutiny, the rise of the participatory culture online, which enabled the sharing and uploading of content purely for entertainment value, provided substantial engagement. As discussed by Sheehan and Morrison “The ubiquity of wireless access makes it possible to never log on or off to the Internet”(Sheehan and Morrison, 2009). This new social obsession of being constantly connected had a detrimental effect on commercial television. The value of television advertising was inextricably linked to the relevance and popularity of the T.V set (Khamis, 2012). This conventional reliance upon the television was superseded by the explosion of the internet, prioritising advertisers to re-evaluate and revive the stasis nature of television advertising. As discussed by Dwyer, advertisers followed consumers online, “where competition for eyeballs and ad dollars is fierce.”(Kiehl, 2009).

                                                             'The death of television' 

                                             wordpress (2010) Untitled. [image online] Available at:   

http://drbristol.wordpress.com/2010/09/ 17/t-g-i-f-ten-tv-tips/ [Accessed: 28 august].                                                   

Faced with the overwhelming ubiquity of the internet, advertisers have had to adjust and adapt to a new era of consumer sovereignty. Accompanying the mass splintering of audiences and the subsequent decline in television consumption, the notion of consumer sovereignty emerged. As discussed by Spurgeon, the presumption of the geographically located audience is defunct. The widely held assumption that an audience’s location on the internet was dependent upon geographical positioning, and thus the ability to engage them, was naïve. The widening of bandwidths, eradication of broadcast restrictions and explosion in internet options through digital media convergence has forged new spaces which enable people to decide where, when and how they consume desired content (Deuze, 2006), regardless of geographical location or content restrictions. This new found fluidity has catalysed a power shift between the producer and the consumers of content, contrasting with “older notions of passive media spectatorship”(Jenkins, 2006). The modern consumer within the online environment is now king (Khamis, 2012), independent in choice and consumption. The rise of the participatory culture has further empowered consumers, as social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and Youtube, amongst other content sharing based sites, undermine the control of industry specific expertise. Now consumers control the means of production, distribution and consumption. This has engaged advertisers and corporations alike to reassess and revive strategies to overcome the obsolescence of traditional media advertising.

Proliferation in Social Network usage

Unknown. (2011) Social Media websites. [image online] Available at: http://watvhistory.com/2011/04/media-convergence-the-evolution-of-content-form-and-delivery/ [Accessed: 28 august].

Dissatisfied by the obsolescence of advertising through old media, advertisers looked for “new ways to reach increasingly distracted, distrustful and disinterested consumers.” (Spurgeon, 2008). Utilising the increasing usage of social media networks and exploiting the sheer social power of the current participatory culture, advertisers are “reaching millions, all on a shoestring marketing budget” (Watts et al, 2007). Viral marketing in relative terms is the low-budget production of content with marketed intent, launched on a social media website in the hope that peer to peer interaction and commentary will activate mass consumption. As discussed by Spurgeon, viral marketing wholly typifies the progression of advertising and new media into one synonymous entity. Validating this argument Spurgeon relies upon the case study of the Coke-Mentos experiments that “illuminate the co-adaptive development of advertising and media.”(Spurgeon, 2008). In 2006 hundreds of consumer produced videos of experiments involving exploding Diet Cokes and Mentos began appearing on websites such as Youtube and Revver. The mass replication, “video capture and Web-based sharing of Coke-Mentos experiments snowballed. Thousands of experiments were uploaded to the Web and viewed by millions.” (Spurgeon, 2008). The particular video exampled below received over 15 million views and appeared at the top of the ‘most watched’ lists, demanding unprecedented brand exposure for both Coke and Mentos.

'Diet Coke+ Mentos' experiment

Unknown. (2006) Diet Coke + Mentos. [video online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKoB0MHVBvM.

Mentos estimated this media exposure was worth “US$ 10 million, equivalent to more than half its annual advertising budget for the US market”(Spurgeon, 2008). As discussed by Dwyer the viral campaign provides a new economical determinist paradigm that is resource efficient in capturing consumer attention. Spurgeon further validates the technological determinism of viral campaigning:

“Convergent developments in consumer electronic barriers and social software that support peer to peer interaction also cause the economic barriers to media production and distribution to plummet” (Spurgeon, 2008).

This economically resourceful convergence of advertising and media further “facilitates the operation of neoliberal global markets” confirming the presence of media imperialism (Dwyer, 2010). This unexpected and unanticipated brand exposure, whilst rare, set into motion the rise of the viral campaign that has seen successful and unsuccessful replications of this viral phenomenon.

Cadbury’s immensely successful 2009 viral campaign “eyebrows” embodies this rising trend of the commercial utilisation of participatory media, to perpetuate branded content through social spheres. In response to the growing popularity of social networks, specifically Youtube, Cadbury set about to recreate the Coke-Mentos experiment phenomenon, capitalising off the success of their viral ‘Gorilla’ campaign. Exploiting new media practices of audio-visual manipulation, the advertisement converges digital special effects with film to satirically depict two children with eyebrows flamboyantly dancing to ‘Don’t stop the rock’ by Freestyle. Adopting a ‘Maddison and Vine’ approach (Spurgeon, 2007) the advertisement seductively wraps marketed material in a creative and subtle approach to engage consumers. The advertisement cut through the surrounding advertising noise of the time, attracting over 9 million views and a wealth of concentrated consumer engagement. Subsequent spin offs and parodies, including a Lily Allen parody, played a major role in reproposing the brand, re-embedding marketing messages and intensifying brand product association. This use of humour and creativity as a form of engagement confirms the effective use of the ‘Maddison and Vine’ approach, highlighting the industry conflict between informational advertising and creative advertising. As examined by Spurgeon, creative advertising is reflexive and more appropriate in the current climate of consumer sovereignty:

“The judgement that rational appeal is the lesser of the two evils of advertising is anchored by the assumption that consumers and media audiences are passive, and that perfect information in a market can really only be attained through rational, instrumental allocation” (Spurgeon, 2008)

Cadbury’s execution of creative advertising justifies the success of this paradigm in engaging consumers through sensitive and circumscribed approaches (Khamis, 2012)

Cadbury 'Eyebrows' Campaign 2009

Cadbury (2009) Untitled. [video online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVblWq3tDwY [Accessed: 20 august].

The explosion of new converged media and the technological capabilities of the Internet have forged an environment of consumer sovereignty and participation, that challenges traditional modes of advertising. These new technological avenues however provide commercial and creative opportunities to engages consumers through the use of dominate social medias and networks.

 Mikaela Heise: 42867584.

References:

Deuze, M. (2006). Collaboration, Participation and the Media. New Media and Society. [online] 8(4) pp.691-698. Available at:<http://www29.griffith.edu.au/imersd/draper/music2/collaboration_participation_media.pdf>[Accessed 25^th August 2012].

Dwyer, T. (2010). Media Convergence, Berkshire: McGraw Hill. pp. 1-23.

Jenkins, H. (2006). Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide, New York: New York University Press. pp. 1-24.

Kiehl, S. (2009) ‘As Journalism remakes itself, students follow’, The Baltimore Sun (Online edition), 31 March. Available at: <http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/bal-journalism0331,0,644027.story>[Accessed 24^th August].

Negroponte, N. (1995) Being digital, Knopf, New York.

Sheehan, K. and Morrison, D. (2009) Beyond convergence: Confluence culture and the role of the advertising agency in a changing world. [online]. Available at:<http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2239/2121>[Accessed 24^th August 2012].

Spurgeon, C. (2008) Advertising and New Media, Oxon: Routledge. pp.24-45.

Watts, D. et al. (2007) Viral Marketing for the Real World. [e-book] Harvard University Press <http://www.itu.dk/people/rkva/2011-Spring-EB22/readings/watts2007_viralmarketing.pdf> [Accessed: 25 august].

Lecture Content:

Khamis, S. (2012) Advertising and New Media, MAS110. Macquarie University, 22^nd August 2012.

Online Music Video Convergence

DIGITAL MEDIA CONVERGENCE - Online Music Video

Digital media convergence refers to the coming together of technologies in terms of media consumption, production and distribution, and the resultant formation of new forms and patterns. Henry Jenkins defines digital convergence as the “…flow of content across multiple media platforms, the cooperation between multimedia industries, and the migratory behaviour of audiences”. (Jenkins, 2006: 2). Digital convergence is extremely present in the case of online music videos, with changes to the technological, industrial and social aspects of music video production that is shaping a new phenomenon.

Miekel and Young (2012) break digital convergence into a number of categories, which are all extremely relevant to the rise of digital online music videos. The technological aspect they refer to addresses the combination of computers, sharing of content and communications around networked media platforms, which has been made even simpler with the phenomenon of social media such as Facebook and YouTube, which allows the growth of user-created content. They also draw on the notion of industrial convergence in regards to digital media convergence, particularly the growth and influence of media institutions in online media space, and the rise of digitally based companies, such as Google and Apple. 

The digitalisation of media has created a range of new tools and resources being available to the public for media creation, and the ever growing advancements of Internet connectivity has led to instant accessibility to content, information, contacting others and the ability for user generated content. This has led to more of a participatory culture, where users are active on the online sphere and are socially connected. While this has created an ability to socially connect instantly with others, it also has led to the demise of traditional music videos on television, and the growing phenomenon of online music videos, particularly referring to those which are user generated and shared via social networking sites.

The traditional form of music videos, before the advancement of new online media technology, were aired on television, usually on programs dedicated to playing music clips. The first music videos began with “musical” style films that generated an enormous amount of attention with videos such as ‘The Jazz Singer’, from 1927, and the Wizard of Oz, 1939, which captivated a large audience and created the genre of music videos. The rise of music videos on television created an opportunity for a growth in performers that specialised both in acting and singing on film, such as the famous Elvis Presley. Elvis Presley became one of the first convergent artists on television, creating a new standard for entertainers. (Giuffre, 2012)

These musical films soon developed into music videos by artists that sought to an image or visual story to their popular song, and the concept of television programs devoted to playing a variety of music clips soon developed and advanced. The rise of music videos also had an enormous impact on family and social views, creating an incentive for families and young teenagers to come back to the television and also assisting in changing social discrimination and separation. Michael Jackson was one of the most influential artists in achieving this, helping to change and shape the mainstream views of the United States that Caucasian people should only listen to other Caucasian artists, and vice versa. His popular style of music and dance brought an enormous global audience together, from all parts of the world; his hit song “Black and White” emphasised this connection more so. Musical video programs also became important for a number of other reasons, particularly in Australia with shows such as Rage and Video Hits which allowed alternative and smaller bands to be introduced to the world. However, although music videos on television had such a huge influence on everyday life, the growth of the Internet, particularly with the phenomenon of social networking sites, and the lack of funds in the music video industry have led to the demise of traditional music videos, and a move towards a more online approach.

“Convergence… opens up new possibilities for old media” (Burton, 2005: 188), and we are beginning to see a move from industry made music videos to hand made music videos (Sibilla, 2010: 227). The growth of social networking sites has provided a new medium for the sharing of visual and audio clips to a much more global audience. YouTube, a website dedicated to sharing free online videos on a global sense, was launched on December 2005, and almost instantly become known as a revolutionary web page, some people referring to it as a “phenomenon” (Hilderbrand, 2007: 48). YouTube makes accessibility of old videos much easier, so viewers can relive classic moments and favourite television shows, and also acts as a prime advertising outlet. The site’s slogan “Broadcast Yourself” refers to the ability for millions of homemade videos that can be shared with friends and family and the rest of the globe. The website allows a global audience to connect; through sharing their own personal videos and commenting and submitting feedback on videos others have watched.

With the rise of YouTube, music videos are not being designed primarily for television anymore, and there is generally not as much funding put into music videos that become popular online. The computer and television have converged in the form of YouTube, drawing on the notion of Jenkin’s theory of the “Black Box Fallacy” (Jenkins, 2006). Many programs once dedicated to playing music videos have ceased to exist, such as Video Hits on Channel 10 and MTV’s choice to no longer be based entirely around music clips. YouTube provides a much more accessible and inexpensive option for artists to share their music videos with the world, where as the only option for sharing videos was via the television, and usually millions of dollars were placed into the production of one clip. Today, artists do not spend as much money producing elaborate videos, and focus more on the connection with their fans over social networking sites like YouTube and Twitter. YouTube has allowed for these videos to go viral, with some music videos reaching hundreds of millions of views worldwide, such as Beyonce’s famous music video Single Ladies, reaching almost 200 million views. The video clip was not particularly elaborate, with minimal special effects, costume changes, backgrounds, exotic locations or fancy material items, which was once some of the most common features put into a professionally produced music video that was to be aired on television. However, the video quickly grew viral online as people all over the globe were able to instantly access this clip. 

However, while there are many positives associated with the move to online music videos, artists also face the risk of copyright breaches and piracy cases. (Hilderbrand 2007: 55). The advancements of the phenomenon of online social media has led to the demise in traditional music videos, but music videos have adapted to survive in the digital world of convergence.

 ---

References

Burton, G 2005, Media and Society: Critical Perspectives, 1^st edn, Open University Press, Berkshire, England

Hilderbrand, L 2007, ‘YouTube: Where Cultural Memory and Copyright Converge', Film Quarterly, vol. 61, pp. 48-57

  

 Jenkins, H 2006, Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide, New York University Press, New York

Miekle, G & Young, S 2012, Media Convergence: Networked Digital Media in Everyday Life, 1^st edn, MacMillan, Great Britain.


Images

YouTube Logo 2011, Involver Blog, viewed 29 August 2012, <http://blog.involver.com/2011/05/12/youtube-the-power-of-online-video-series-part-1/>.

Portrait of Elvis Presley, 2012, Wikipedia, viewed 29 August 2010, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elvis_Presley/>


Videos 

Beyoncé - Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) - YouTube . 2012. Beyoncé - Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) - YouTube . [ONLINE] Available at: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4m1EFMoRFvY> [Accessed 29 August 2012].

Michael Jackson - Black Or White - YouTube . 2012. Michael Jackson - Black Or White - YouTube . [ONLINE] Available at: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2AitTPI5U0> [Accessed 29 August 2012]. 


Other

Giuffre, L. (2012) Lecture: Online Music Video. Available at: <http://echo.mq.edu.au:8080/ess/echo/presentation/355d3dd4-b5fe-4353-a002-c217a80c687a>

Advertising and New Media

Discuss the phenomenon of digital media convergence in relation to one of the following: Advertising & New Media

 

New media technologies have radically multiplied spaces and opportunities for the production, distribution and consumption of all media content. New media entails a sweep of digital communication technologies that are networked and incorporate multimedia effects. In an increasingly pluralised digital era there is expansive responsibility on advertisers to attract consumers, whose options on media entertainment have expanded so dramatically. Effectively we’ve seen an explosion in advertising that harnesses and exploits the digital media environment. The new strategies developed by advertising companies to reach consumers in such a digital era demonstrate a paradigm shift of power from the advertiser to the consumer. Evidence of such power shifts and approaches to advertising in new media are evident when exploring “Search Based Advertising” (Croteau 2006) and theories such as the “Madison and Vine” theory.  To discuss the phenomenon of digital convergence in relation to advertising, specific case studies will be explored.

According to Battelle (Spurgeon 2005), in less than a decade search engines such as Google and Yahoo! have become central to new media advertising.  Search based advertising is now exceeding the success of television and radio commercials due to its mobility, flexibility and variety. Battelle asserted that “Search Based Advertising” (Spurgeon 2005) is paramount to the rapid confluence of digital media and marketing.

As a result, such advertising has led to a fluctuation of power from large mass media corporations to individualised small advertisers. The term “Long tail”, coined by Anderson (2004) expressed that small online advertisers are essentially liable for the success of this advertising. It essentially places the power in the hands of the consumer to seek and discover. For the main part of the 20^th century, selling space and time to advertisers was the primary way for mass media corporations to create profits. However, as evident in the “Long Tail” theory (Anderson 2004), due to the convergence of digital media, it has become evident that “the addition of new media to the media mix is an important factor that shifts the balance of power away from the agencies to small advertisers and consumers” (Spurgeon 2005).

 

Furthermore, in this new media context, audiences are more nomadic. Within the media industry there is more talk of consumer sovereignty; consumers determine what gets sold in the marketplace. Yet again, we see this shift of power from large advertising corporations to the individual consumer.  As “digital natives” (Sheehan 2009), consumers decide where, how and what they consume. As such, advertisers have recognised that they need to establish stimulating connections between consumers through the use of new media-as oppose to old media in which the attention of consumers was largely “taken for granted”(Croteau 2006). In response to this, there has been an apparent rise of viral marketing campaigns, otherwise referred to as “The viral revolution” (Sheehan 2009). Media companies have been launching viral advertising campaigns online with the intention that consumers will propel it through their own social networks, therefore giving it the kind of exposure that would be extremely expensive to buy through old media channels. There are numerous examples of such ‘viral campaigns’ (Spurgeon 2005) which have effectively connected with consumers.
The epitome of social media success is evident in the ‘Old Spice’ advertisement. The success of the ‘Old Spice’ advertisement speaks to the power of new media when done well. Since its release in 2010 it has essentially become the “viral media template” (Khamis 2012). The success of this advertisement can be largely attested to the growing hunger for video entertainment in collaboration with advertising.

Additionally, branded content is one way advertising has developed in conversational media. “Many advertisers are looking for new ways to reach out to distracted, distrustful and disinterested consumers” (Spurgeon 2005). Donaton used the phrase; “Madison and Vine” (Spurgeon 2005) to describe branded content. Madison refers to the geographical apex of international advertising and Vine refers to Hollywood (Vine St). The Madison and Vine theory refers to the intersection of Hollywood content and Madison content. This convergence has strategically inspired ideas to provide content that delivers a marketing message which is so seductively packaged that consumers will not only mind that it’s an advertisement but will also incorporate it into their own individualised media flows. Once again, the power falls into the hands of the consumers as opposed to the advertising company.  

One of the earliest examples of contemporary branded content can be seen in the “BMW: The Hire” advertisements. They were a campaign of 8 short films which were distributed online with the aim to simply try and connect to “young, affluent new media users.” (Spurgeon 2005). The success was phenomenal. Modelling the convergence of media and film, the BMW advertisements effectively demonstrated advertising companies reaching out and connecting with consumers-whom of which remain in control. This blurring of commerce and art can also be recognised within the music industry. In his analysis, Spurgeon (2005) incorporated the example of a Sting song which featured him travelling in an S-Type Jaguar. Once Jaguar agreed to the music video, both parties (Jaguar and Sting) experienced enormous success as a result. The phenomenon of digital media convergence has generated the growing need for media personalities to spread their talent widely through advertising.

Old media was once the reign of advertising possibilities whereby large financial organisations held the power to manipulate consumers during prime time on television and radio shows. However as a result of gradual digital convergence, there has been an explicit shift of power from advertising companies to consumers.
The digitalisation of media has called for advertising companies to recognise that they must reach out and connect to consumers. Prime examples of successful communication are recognised through the use of search based advertising in association with ‘viral campaigns’. Branded content, specifically the ‘Madision and Vine’ (Spurgeon 2005) theory also demonstrate the way in which advertising companies connect with consumers through new media.  According to Sheehan, those agencies which recognise and embrace the cultural and technological changes of society will be the agencies that lead the various innovations designed to play a central part in digital media convergence (2009).

 

 

 

 

 Bridget McKinn
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References

Journals:

Bardoel, J. and D'Haenens, L. (2008) Public Service Broadcasting in Converging Media Modalities: Practices and Reflections from the Netherlands . The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies , 14 pp.24-27. doi:10.1177/1354856508091086

 

Croteau, D. and Hoynes, W. (2006) Corporate Media and the Public Interest. The Business of Media, pp.155-189.

Sheehan, K. and Morrison, D. (2009) Confluence culture and the role of the advertising agency in a changing world. Beyond Convergence, 14 (3), pp.5-7.

Spurgeon, C. (2008) Advertising and New Media, Oxon, Routledge, pp. 24-45

Images:

http://www.google.com.au/imgres?q=Anderson+%22long+tail%22+theory&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1525&bih=718&tbm=isch&tbnid=uXOhQWYQ7h-

http://www.google.com.au/imgres?q=MADISON+AND+VINE+ST&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biMadison-Vine-Scott-Donaton/dp/0071436847&imgurl=http://ecx.images-

http://www.google.com.au/imgres?q=facebook+logo&um=1&hl=en&biw=1525&bih=718&tbm=isch&tbnid=zJxMgbsojbq3jM:&imgrefurl=http://feedgrowth.com/idea-categories/social

Videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owGykVbfgUE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgOOU0z_Pik

Other:

Khamis, S. (2012) Lecture: Advertising and New Media. Available at: http://ilearn.mq.edu.au/blocks/echo360_echocenter/echocenter_frame.php?id=9559