MAS110
Media Convergence Essay
Hannah Watt – 42467357
Discuss the phenomenon of digital
media convergence in relation to Music Video Online.
An art made by the
people, and for the people, as a happiness to the maker and the user. That is
the only real art there is, the only art, which will be an instrument to the
progress of the world, and not a hindrance - William Morris, The Art of the
People, 1879.
In today’s modern world, expansive
technological innovations and advancements have facilitated the convergence of old
and new media platforms, which in turn has allowed for the streaming of online
music videos. Media convergence “is the process whereby new technologies are
accommodated by existing media and communication industries and cultures” (Dwyer,
2010). The Internet and
more recently, smart phone devices have been some of the largest contributors
to the media convergence phenomenon; allowing a vast range of media platforms
such as print, video and audio to become almost instantaneously accessible from
nearly anywhere in the world; furthermore completely changing the way in which
we, as an audience, absorb information.
As individuals, we are able to distribute media
content through social and participatory sites, in turn exposing and
advertising the artist and creator of the music video. The aptitude to share
numerous video links allows people to enjoy similar music tastes as well as
being able to engage in poly-platform infer structure.
Viewing music videos via the television was
once in itself a part of ordinary life. Tuning into programs such as ‘Video
Hits’, ‘MTV’ and ‘Count Down’ on a Saturday morning provided access to the
latest music videos for audiences, with uninterrupted content in promotion of
musicians and artists. As music videos became less profitable and are now
accessed online by consumers, programs such as ‘Rage’ responded to the
technological trends and convergences, creating a smart phone application and
webpage that shared a connection with participatory and social media platforms
such as Facebook and Twitter.
Media industries
are constantly changing structurally due to emerging trends and technological
advancements.
The merging of Google and YouTube in 2006 is
a palpable example of new world media convergence and is now listing YouTube as
a “popular cultural phenomenon…with the ability to facilitate participatory
cultures” (Burgess, 2009). This collaboration has greatly impacted the music
industry through millions of people gaining access to online music videos, in
turn simultaneously advertising and promoting music artists.
YouTube is a
highly recognisable online music video search engine due to its ‘informal’
database for all types of content such as television previews, amateur/home
videos and music videos. It allows users
to upload clips where anyone can view, rate, comment and share content, through
web pages such as Facebook, Twitter and Blogger. As a result of this reign of
accessibility, Youtube.com has become the second most popular site on the
Internet and to this day, is one of the largest examples of online media
convergence.
As a result of
media convergence and societal trends, You Tube has now become a portable
application through smart phones – “The always on, always connected and always with us smart
device facilitates a new vernacular of the now” (Vickers, 2012); making music videos easily accessible to consumers.
Audiences are “empowered by these new technologies” (Jenkins, 2006) and are
able to re-appropriate and redistribute content in the form of recordings,
amateur videos or concert footage that converge online through network
infrastructure. Meikle and Young
suggest that ‘the significant characteristic of contemporary media [such as
YouTube] is not just that they are digital but that they are also networked,
enabling complex relationships of two-way communication” (2012).
Beyonce - Single Ladies (original)
Re-appropriation of original music video created by a YouTube user
Above: example of the features of YouTube e.g. appropriation
With the
phenomenon of the new, come new problems arising from unprecedented territory.
You Tube features unauthorized hyperlinks for music videos as well as
appropriations and parodies of music videos created by its users. Problems that
may come about are in alignment with copyright laws where owners of videos have
the right of publication in return, offering music videos, moreover benefiting
the artist in that they are able to be in control of profitable revenue and how
the video content may be distributed. “By exploring a model of participation we have moved away
from the authorship of a single person towards mass authorship and a
collaborative montage vision, of not just technology but creativity” (Vickers,
2012).
YouTube’s dependency lies in the hands of mainstream
media sources as its foundation is formed by new content being continuously
uploaded, in order to remain up to date and most importantly, to remain within
the current stream. Live broadcasts such as celebrity television appearances
and concerts are uploaded almost instantaneously to the YouTube page; It is
thus so that for the music industry to be targeting mass audiences, the
prominent media platform to access music videos will, in the future, remain as
Television. The downside to this climate is that participatory culture may be
seen as a threat to commercial media and music producers, who desire primary
control over their intellectual property. However, on the contrary, consumers
may also be optimistic about promoting the work of music artists and bringing
them into mainstream media and popularity.
Over the course of
the past decade, the media landscape has changed exponentially with the
development of the Internet, in turn ensuring and establishing the
infrastructures for the current media convergent environment. As discussed by Hilderbrand, it is evident that
through the technological advancements of programs such as the Internet, Google
and YouTube, expectations for availability and accessibility have been greatly
accelerated (2007) within society creating a higher demand for a more expansive
range of content and at a faster rate.
As the process of media convergence continues, we will
come to see a vast range of improvements and advancements within the world of
online music videos. As the media convergent environment expands, develops and
becomes more independent, we will come to see vast changes within the online
music video industry. The question left to ask is that as these changes occur,
who will profit and how will industries, including the music industry remain
profitable?
Reference List
Burgess J, Green J (2009) ‘YouTube: Online
Video and Participatory Culture’, Polity Press.
Dwyer T (2010) ‘Media Convergence’, McGraw Hill,
Berkshire, Pp. 1-23
Hilderbrand L
(2007) ‘YouTube: Where Cultural Memory and Copyright Converge’ in Film Quarterly, Vol. 61, Pp. 48-57
Jenkins H (2006)
‘Convergence Culture: Where Old and
New Media Collide’, New York, University Press, Pp. 1-24
Meikle, G, and Young, S (2012) Media
Convergence: Networked Digital Media in Everyday Life, Palgrave Macmillan.
Vickers, R (2012) “Convergence Media, Participation
Culture and the Digital Vernacular: Towards the Democratization of
Documentary”,
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