Task 2 - How the developments of technology has had an impact on producers of media content?

There are a variety of different ways in which the developments of technologies has had an impact on producers within the TV and Film Industry. When it comes to satelite television, this impacts producers due to the fact all in all it provides good signal around the world which producers could benefit from as their programs or films are being seen globally by a variety of different audiences which means they are getting more views. Satellite Television also impacts producers due to the fact that it provides them with more audience ratings considering they are targeting mass audiences globally. However bad weather could interrupt the signal coming from the satellite which could then also impact producers as audience members will find it hard to watch the programs they desire which could then mean producers shows or films won't be watched. Cable is also another technology that can impact producers due to the fact that it has also changed the ways in which producers select media content due to the fact that it includes a variety of channels that they can show their programs on. 

Piracy has been made easier by the introduction of the development of digital technology due to the fact that nowadays you don't have to make a single digital copy, instead you can make multiple copies and show it everywhere online. Also people who have the knowledge and who is familiar with technology can now make even better copies that are of a high quality. This can have an impact on producers within the TV and Film Industries due to the fact that piracy allows millions of people to access films and TV shows online for free which means producers lose out on money. If people can access newly released films and TV shows online for free in high quality then people would stop paying to go to the cinema which means that producers within the industry will lose out on a lot of profit due to the fact that audiences would rather watch a movie for free at home online rathe than going to pay and watch the movie or buy the DVD. Therefore the way in which piracy effects producers is that it makes them lose out on large amounts of money they would be getting from DVD sales and cinema sales which would be smaller due to the access of the internet. 

The development of technology has very much changed the TV and Film Industry due to the fact that now technology has developed producers can now cater for both mass and niche markets. Whereas before technology was developed there wasn't enough shelf space to cater for both markets so instead the producers within the Industry only catered for the mass market as they know its the one that will make them the most money in the end. However due to the developments of technology over the years, there is now no limited shelf space that producers have to stick to. Instead they can now distribute to niche markets and use the same shelf space. Therefore it opens up the industry to a market that they couldn't have catered for before the development of technology. It also has an impact on producers due to the fact that it develops the jobs within the industry because of the fact that the industry is now catering for a larger market which means more job roles need feeling which can both be positive and negative when it comes to the producers. More jobs has an impact on the producer as it means they are then responsible for finding the people to fill the jobs which is time consuming and costs money, however considering that the overall outcome is that the industry can now cater to a much larger audience this means that producers will gain much more money. 

A good example of the opening up of the market would be the BBC as they created a channel called the 'BBC Parliament' that is shown on TV and it specifically streams what is going on within parliament. So very few people tune in to watch the program, however due to the development of technology it can now be justified as it is broadcasted digitally and the industry can attract both markets being niche and mass. Therefore more channels can be produced with relative ease now its broadcasted digitally, this means that producers can offer a wider capacity of media due to the more channels being available. The development of technology has also effected make up artists within the industry when it comes to high definition which is only available nowadays than what was to offer years ago. Due to the quality of TV has improved producers need to get better at hiding blemishes as they will be more obvious, so prodcers will have to look for better make up artists that have the skills in place to hide things more from the TV and potentially have to pay them more. 

Task 1 – What are the key developments in technology in the TV and Film Industries?

Satellite –

One of the many developments within the TV and Film Industry is satellite television, which is a broadcasting service, which allows viewers/subscribers to receive television through a dish shaped receiver unit. Satellite TV came about in 1963 and it has changed the ways in which viewers view content on their TV by allowing them to receive television signal which means they are then able to watch the programs they want without worrying about any signal problems. The positive outcome of satellite television is that it helps the audience due to the fact that it provides a wide range of channels globally, for audiences to choose from and watch for example free view and Sky. It also provides good signal around the world in general which producers could also benefit from due to their programs being viewed globally by different audiences and satellite TV also provides producers with more audience ratings. However Satellite has a negative effect due to the fact that if the weather was too be bad then it could interrupt the connection and the signal might not be a strong as it should be which will mean the audience will have difficulty watching there programs.

Satellites have changed the way news is distributed and received all around the world. In terms of the privacy of news media, it has allowed global news networks, such as CNN and the BBC, to break up longstanding government monopolies. Access to satellites and the expanding Internet has the potential to create a shared consciousness around the world through global news and cultural interaction. When it comes to the developments of satellite technology many things have changed, for example during the past three decades have had an impact on the ways in which news is spread and how this information affects the global society. Technological improvements since then have allowed for a decrease in satellite size and cost, and an increase in production and distribution of television programming which can be broadcast to every inhabited continent. Rupert Murdoch, media mogul in charge of the BBC's international news service, BBC World, said "satellite broadcasting makes it possible for information hungry residents of many closed societies to bypass state-controlled TV channels" This means that he is saying that by having satellite television it allows audiences to access more TV channels in a high quality which means they can have a good television experience. CNN news is a cable news network that started out as a domestic news channel in the US. However the owner Ted Turner, decided to then go global and develop another network which he called CNN International. Today this continuous, global news network is the leader in worldwide communications, and is available to hundreds of millions of viewers in more than 200 countries.

Cable –

Another development within the TV and film industry in terms of technology is cable television, which is another way in which audiences can receive signal on their television through a cable.  Cable TV has changed the ways audiences view media (programs) by giving them the opportunity to choose any program they wish to watch and be entertained by it. Cable came about in the 1940’s and 1950’s and it has also changed the ways in which producers select media content due to the fact that it includes a variety of channels that they can show there programs on.  Cable television is a system of distributing television programs to subscribers via radio frequency. To be able to use cable television anywhere and at any time, cable distribution lines must be available underground utility lines. It comes with multiple television channels; roughly 500 channels are distributed to subscriber residences through a coaxial cable. The negative effect of cable television is that if the weather is bad and water touches the cable from underground this could damage the cables and effect the television experience.

Internet –

The internet came about in the year 1992 and its important within the TV and Film industry as it as developed and allowed people to watch a number of things such as TV shows, films, clips and much more on many other platforms other than just the TV.  It has a major effect on the industry due to the fact that it is used by a wide variety of people across the world and allows people to exchange information, videos, pictures and audio quickly.  The Internet has played a major part within the changes made within the TV and Film Industry in both negative and positive ways in the sense that it has allowed access to media easy. A positive in the rise of the use of Internet in Internet Television also known as online TV which is a general term that covers the delivery of television shows and other video content over the internet, typically by major television broadcasters. Internet television has become very popular through services such as BBC IPlayer, 4Od, ITV Player and Demand Five.  However a negative issue with the Internet is that it is affecting the industry in terms of piracy. One person with a well hidden camera in the cinema can post the first viewing of a movie online for all to see, which then makes companies, industries and eventually movie rental businesses lose out on a lot of profit due to the fact that audiences would rather watch the movie for free at home on the internet rather than going to the cinema to pay and watch the movie or buy the DVD.

Dial up Internet – Dialup Internet is a service that allows connectivity to the Internet through a standard telephone line. By connecting the telephone line to the modem in your computer and inserting the other end into the phone jack, and configuring the computer to dial a specific number provided by your internet service provider (ISP) you are able to access the internet on your computer.

Broadband – This was invented in the early 2000’s, and it’s a much faster Internet connection than dial up Internet. It can also be delivered in many ways such as mobile, fire optics, cable and ADSL. However instead of having just one cable that is used to upload and download voice they have created a broadband so it gets delivered faster.

On demand viewing –

Video on demand is an interactive TV technology for companies that broadcast TV shows and programs. Video on demand allows the audience to view programming in real-time, this means that the user can watch these programs while they are being shown on TV. Video on demand also allows the audience to download the program and watch it some other time. There are other ways that audience could get their services for video on demand and those are things such as the Internet. On the Internet the user would be able to go to websites such as ITV player and BBC I Player and watch shows being stream live on the website. Video on demand has developed a lot in the past due to the fact that before 2006 on demand viewing didn’t even exist, meaning that any show that was on the TV and an audience member missed it. That meant that they could not watch it again. But now because there are a lot of Video on demand channels such as ITV, BBC, Sky, Channel 4 and more it means that it is really unlikely that if someone misses a show they wont be able to see it again. On demand viewing is having a massive impact on both producers and the audience. Audiences are now able to seek out exactly what they want to watch. They're no longer restricted by what happens to be on at the time when they're sitting in front of the TV. This means that the audience can be a lot more selective about what they watch so competition between TV channels is fiercer than its ever been. Therefore they need to make sure that their programmes really are top quality/popular as its so easy these days for audiences to find something else they would rather watch. 

High Definition –

High Definition is another thing that has developed a lot over the past couple of years, due to the fact that a couple of years ago viewers of the TV and Film Industry were watching TV shows and films in a lower quality which was not in HD. Therefore this would have effected the viewers due to them watching specific programs and films in low quality. However this has developed over time now allowing viewers to watch media content in HD, which stands for high definition. There is a very big difference when it comes to showing programs and films in HD and SD, which stands for Standard Definition. The image shows the difference between the two due to the fact that the viewer can see that the HD experience is sharper rather than seeing pixels on screen. On the TV there are a lot of channels that are in HD, for example BBC, ITV, most Sky channels and more. High Definition has developed so much that viewer do not only have the choice to have a HD TV they can have other HD things such as HD DVD player or a Blu-Ray. 

Budget for cloning HD tapes and storing them separately, whilst this doubles your tape costs, you may be able to recoup some of it in lower insurance charges. Also with film, your entire investment is contained within that tape.The editing department will need an assistant to clone and quality control the HD masters, log them and load them into the editing system to make sure they are monitored correctly. The editing department is now often responsible for receiving the master tapes and cloning them for insurance purposes. If not done by a facilities house, the tapes are then down-converted to a format suitable for whichever editing system is being used, i.e DVCAM, BETA SP, Digi BETA. Alternatively, You can now convert the HD to SD and ingest directly from the masters into the Avid if you wish. This process can save money as long as your assistant makes clones along the way during shooting. Editing in HD on a large monitor allows for a further quality control step in checking for focus problems and if there are any flags, wires, lights etc in shot that may not show up on a standard definition monitor. An editor viewing a large, high definition picture may even find themselves making different editing decisions; holding a wide shot for longer before cutting to a close–up for example, due to the extra detail they are now able to see.

Interactive Television –

Interactive television is pretty much like tradition TV, however with additional extras such as on demand delivery, being able to control what you are watching on TV and also being able to have the added extra of the red button. By clicking the red button it allows the audience/viewers with extra research and specifically on children programs if you were to click the red button it allows you to play further interactive games that are associated with that particular show they are watching.  Interactive came about in the 1994-1995 and comes with its many pros and cons, for example a disadvantage is that it can be costly and you may not watch all of the channels you are provided with which means that the red button extras may actually slow down the TV.  However an advantage of this is that if offers the viewer with multiple channels and the quality is much higher and allows you to display Blu-Ray, game consoles can be plugged into the TV.

Pay per view –

This refers to paying for anything over and above the subscription for any added extras per view.  More simply it is a television service in which viewers are required to pay a fee in order to watch a specific program. An example of this would be Sky due to the fact that you can be subscribed to them but if you wanted to watch a movie on demand you will have to pay a small amount of money to watch it. It came out in the late 1980’s. A final point in relation to consumer demand involves ‘pay-per view’, where viewers pay to watch each show. The effect of a price greater than zero is to deter some viewers. Whilst pay per view raises revenue for those who supply the programme it is inefficient, it costs the same to broadcast a show whether one person watch’s it or a million. Putting a positive price on a show causes some viewers not to watch it, and therefore the potential satisfaction derivable to the from the show is lost. Meanwhile producers incur the same cost to broadcast the show regardless of the number of viewers. Pay per view reduces the welfare of society, since producer’s costs are unchanged whilst consumer’s welfare is lower.