With the trend of globalization, there has been an increase
in media across multimedia platforms in the past few few years, which mean
media convergence. James Watson defined ‘convergence’ as the coming-together of
communication devices and process. Watson
explained that convergence has operated as individual products of hardware and
software have been centralized into multimedia,. This means media production
has been centralized into a small number of corporate hands, most of these
transnational. (2012,p61) In recent years, new media has become important in daily
life. This essay will focus on media convergence to solve problems.
As this video shows, people needed to buy a newspaper
in the past. They needed to buy a vinyl recorder and machine to play
music at home; needed to go to the theatre or use a VCR to watch a movie; needed
to find a pay phone to phone home; needed to get a typewriter and paper
to writer a report. But now media convergence can achieve any
kind of requirements. People can read news on many different platforms
like the iPhone, computer and television. People can send letters by E-mail,
can phone home by mobile, can listen to music at home using a DVD player and
speakers, can write a report with their PC and print it with a printer.
It can be said that
people are living in digital age. In Jenkins’ writing, convergence culture is a
clash between old and new media, where grassroots and corporate media
intersected, and producer and consumer interact in a changeable way (2006) From
Jenkins’ writing there is a question here, whether new media will replace the
old media. In this age, new media may replace old media, but it does not mean
old media will be totally lost. Old media will still exist to support new media.
In many companies using email, they have lots of decorated stationery with
good-looking patterns. As this video shows, people needed to buy a newspaper in
the past. They needed to buy a vinyl record and machine to play music at home;
needed to go to the theatre or use a VCR to watch a movie; needed to find a pay
phone to phone home needed to get a typewriter and paper to write
In another case, nowadays example people like to purchase
newspapers, even after they having watched news program on television, just
because the newspaper has included more information. Compared to news programs,
newspapers have lots of interesting news and not only news. Sometimes they will
report an educational story or some other information. As in this sample, there
is lots of discount information. In this way, the newspaper is better than the news
program on television.
Mobile TV is another
example where we can compare new and old media. Shani Orgad discusses why mobile
TV has a tension between new and old. Industry experts, say that mobile
TV will evolve from and enhance existing and previous technologies and familiar
social contexts. (2009) Mobile TV exists in many different companies, but all
of those products are not completely the same. This slight divergence may combine
to make a new product in the future. The same as mobile TV, it might be a collection
of other products’ divergence to compose. For instance, think about this, old
media is still alive in media world. Convergence culture is about all stories,
sounds, images, and relationships. Music Video could be seen as music and images
together on the screen. In YouTube there are lots of videos that people have
uploaded independently. YouTube has
contributed to a culture of clips. People from all over the world can use
YouTube to search for a specific moment, such as the Olympic games. Someone may
miss the opening ceremony for a special reason, now the clip can be found on
You Tube.
There is an
obvious case with media convergence. Apple Inc. has release a series of products
in 2007; it has shocked the world with its iPhone, iPad, iMac etc. In Apple
Inc. lots of applications can be used through the iPhone and iPad platforms. The
iPhone has truly achieved the aim of a ‘mobile
computer’; a large number of applications that can be used on the computer,
also can be used on the iPhone platform as well. Apple’s application categories
include books, business, catalogue, education, entertainment, finance, food and
drink, Games, Health and Fitness, lifestyle, medical, music, navigation, news,
newsstand, photo and video, productivity, reference, social networking, sports,
travel, utilities and weather. Apple applications cover virtually every aspect
of people’s daily life. On Apple Inc.’s iTunes you can purchase genuine books, songs
and movies instead of in shops. This series of products are examples of change
in media convergence. People can even read books and make some notes in their iPhone.
Paper books are no as longer as popular as they were before, except for
collections.
The Fibreculture Journal
pointed out that “Converging ideas and using media was a necessary precondition
to overcome the regimes of geography whilst producing this edition. (2008)”
Converging ideas can produce a new product and when applied to media it can
create a new media system. Just as Jenkins said, collective intelligence is a
replacement source of media power (2006).
In conclusion, new media
must replace old media in the world, because audiences are ‘new’. Yet, it does
not mean old media will never appear again. In the above cases, old media is alive
in a special way and seeps into new media. Media convergence is the result of globalization
and cultural exchange. Different cultural backgrounds can create diversity in ideology
and technology. This essay analyses the relationship between new media and old
media, and it elaborates on the development trend of old media. New media is a
sign of the world's scientific and technological development.
References:
Book:
Jenkins, H. (2006) Convergence Culture, New York, New York University Press, pp 1-24.
Watson, J and
Hill, A (2012) convergence,
Dictionary of Media and Communication Students (8th edition)
Online article:
Orgad, Shani
(2009) 'Mobile TV : Old and new in the construction of an emergent technology' Convergence,
vol 15 no 2 pp.197 - 214http://con.sagepub.com.simsrad.net.ocs.mq.edu.au/content/15/2/19 7.full.pdf+html
Online Journals:
Picture:
http://en.kiosko.net/au/2010-03-20/np/sydney_morning_herald.html
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