Script - Task 4
Task 4 –
Technological Convergence and Media Distribution
Prior to this vlog, I analysed the demographics of the film
XMOW, I will be analysing how the film is distributed, marketed and advertised.
I will also mention how the current generation are digital natives and how
their current level technology is considered technological convergences.
Distribution
Distribution has two definitions; 1. How the product reaches
the audience and 2. How it is advertised and promoted. Examples of how media is
distributed to people through cinemas, television, Internet, retail and
download.
Cinemas are made to provide the highest quality through their
facilities. Television is another form of distribution but the quality of
distribution usually depends on the audiences’ facilities. The Internet has now
become a viable source of film distribution but it has 2 sides to the
distribution; commercial and illegal (Piracy). Commercially is through the
usage of commercially approved websites such as LoveFilm. However, uploading
and giving the ability to download movies gives people the ability to share it,
which is technically illegal as people are sharing a commercially produced
media, which means the producer is losing revenue and profit. Pay per view is
one of the new and more popular ways of movie distribution and Netflix is one
of the largest distributors of films. They give the audience the ability to pay
subscription and they provide the films that the audience wants. Finally, On
Demand is a form of media distribution that allows service providers such as
Sky and Virgin Media to provide movie services at any time the audience
requires. XMOW is provided through multiple mediums such as On Demand TV and
originally the cinema. It was first released in April 29th 2009 in
the UK, Denmark, South Africa and Australia, April 30th 2009 in
Philippines and in the Dominican Republic and 1st May in the United
States and Canada. By September 15th 2009, Fox Home Entertainment
released XMOW on DVD and Blu-ray and this provided another way for consumers to
watch their films.
All these forms of distribution are either a form of analogue
or digital. Analogue means that it can only be played in terms of not being
able to play from a certain point in the media or being able to select where to
start. Digital media (which is usually the main method of media) does the
opposite and is a completely advantageous form of media. It allows the audience
to skip, pause and start from the previous point of the film.
Technological
Convergence
The current generation of technology has been a collection of
several technologies from before made into one thing. An example of a
technological convergence are smartphones; having the ability to be used as a
normal phone, used as an mp3 player, as a camera or even as a connection
hotspot. This links in to people who are
digital native: the fact that they are more adapted to technology compared to
the previous generations.
Before the time when the internet was just a one way and
information only travelled from one place and only received on the other end.
There couldn’t be any form of physical interaction between two points. When Web
2.0 rose, the Internet would become the most used thing as a databank of
information.
Marketing
– Advertising and Promotion
Marketing is done so that a film creates the maximum amount
of awareness towards its targeted audience. Paper based promotions include
magazines, newspaper and posters. Digital and physical advertisement can
include trailers, merchandise, collaborations and joint projects, promotional
events i.e. giveaways, press, film festivals, in-store promotions, product
placement and the biggest one of the current generation is social media.
An indirect way of promotion and advertisement is through
Prosumers* (Consumers who became producers). Through websites such as review sites
i.e. Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb and Metacritic, films can gain recognition or can be
seen as a film to be avoided which would mean review sites can be considered a
double-edged sword in terms of gaining attention. Marketing also involves the
audience in terms of viewership and attention the production has received,
either by popular use of social media or through other means i.e. word of
mouth.
XMOW was promoted with tie-in merchandising with 7-Eleven,
Papa John’s Pizza and Shick. Hugh Jackman (The lead character) even posed as
Wolverine in a ‘Got Milk’ campaign. A comic series made its debut, which isn’t
directly influenced by the film but it was made so that people who were
interested in the film could become interested in the comic series. An example
of how the movie became a success could be how the movie inspired the idea to
make a video game off of it. The video game was made by Activision Blizzard and
the review for it was substantial enough to be considered a well-made game
albeit, some negative reviews. However, the positives outweigh the negatives.
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