Technology Combines Mainstream

The phenomenon of social networking sites has changed the way we participate in politics. Media has figured out a way to bridge the political awareness gap. Within the past few years we have seen the mesh of politics take part in social networking as a tool to reach greater audiences and it has proved to be effective. Pop culture today is a combination of new media, reality TV, music, and the use of the internet as a base for social interaction. One prime example of this mesh is the recent 2008 presidential election trail. We saw presidential campaigns work hard throughout political debates by blogging, talking to reporters, and sending out e-mails to make their take on the candidates’ performances known.
Sites such as Facebook and Youtube served as platforms to get online debates and opinions voiced to TV media. The 56th Presidential Inauguration was counted as one of the most watched events in media history. Nearly 37.8 million Americans watched the inauguration of President Barack Obama on TV, making Obama’s inauguration the second most-viewed Presidential inauguration since Ronald Reagan’s record 41.8 million viewers in 1981. This massive number is due to the open number of outlets available to view the inauguration—TV, streamline through multiple internet sites and mobile devices. Akamai Technologies Inc., which delivers Internet video for many Web sites, said the inauguration was a record for them, with 7.7 million people watching video streams at the same time.
You can go on Facebook and browse various politician pages or you can Youtube your favorite politician on a viral video. We even see politics becoming a part of the reality TV craze. Newsweek set out to probe the question, “What if MTV made a reality show about Obama’s first 100 days?” MTV & Newsweek has created a new series of webisodes about Barack Obama’s first 100 days in the Oval Office. It’s called “The District”. The show was created as a spinoff of MTV’s reality shows such as the “The Hills” and “The City”.
Networks have realized the power of partnerships with social sites such as Twitter, Youtube, Facebook and Myspace. Jeff Jarvis, the director of the interactive journalism NY’s City University says, “If we’re going to have an open, collaborative government, we need to have access to those tools. Not only should the White House be blogging and Twittering, but so should members of congress.” There is a transformation of more partnerships between major Networks and social online sites. For example during the presidential campaigns CNN and Facebook facilitated debates online while giving up to date reports live on TV polling citizen’s opinions or thoughts by viewing people’s facebook status, twitter updates and wall post. When it comes to bridging the communications gap between the politics and the global citizen the ever changing face of communication is limitless! It will be interesting to see what the future holds.

A Pop Culture Comeback!

In this day and age a nice storyline is not enough to get the average consumer to go out to the movie theater— why pay the ever rising ticket price for sticky floors, over priced popcorn and chatty teens when we have plasma TV’s and Blue Ray disc at home? Thanks to the recent revival of 3 dimensional films the industry may have found a way to give theater going an edge. Within in the past year we have seen 3D movies gradually making their way back to the big screen. It has been a while since the 3D craze of the 1950’s. Today, some of the industry’s producers are looking to 3D movie development as a new wave of innovation that will refresh and motivate movie goers.

Movie theaters will start installing 3D projection technology and digital cinema systems which streamline movie distribution by using digital mediator satellites instead of film reels. Some of the major players in the re-introduction of 3D movie development include 3aility, Dream Works, Real D and IMAX to name a few. The movie industry is trying to meet the needs of an ever growing audience while competing with new forms of media such as in home theaters, HD and Blue Ray. We are seeing history repeat itself. In the 1950’s 3D movies were initially created to compete against the introduction of color home television sets. The movie industry is in a similar position today and the future of 3D movies combined with the digital advances looks hopeful for the next generation of films. The CEO of Dreamworks Animation, Jeffery Katzenberg says, “I believe that this is the single greatest opportunity for the movie going experience since the advent of color, it’s been more than 60 years since there has been a significant enhancement or innovation.” Unlike the 1950’s we have the ability to make the 3D experience more sleek, instead of red and blue cardboard glasses we have black 3D glasses that are polarized lenses and that are slightly stylish.

Some are skeptical about the success of this new generation of 3D movies. I feel that today’s consumer enjoys interacting with a product in any capacity. Another positive angle is that 3D movies could also act as a temporary solution to the major wave of theater pirating/ bootleg movie production. Other challenges include the integration of 3D into movie studio cost for installation and standards for digital projection. For example a digital projector can cost around $100,000 plus $20,000 for the addition of 3D to the silver screen. Despite skepticism and possible hurdles, the 3D experience will help differentiate movie theaters from newly rising personal entertainment systems. The 3D comeback is opening doors for new artistic opportunities and it will reinvent, redefine and completely transform how we create and experience movies!

SOURCES

Knowledge @ Emory. 3D Movies: Adding Depth or Falling Flat? November 13, 2008. <http://knowledge.emory.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1195#>.

Kolesnikov, Sonia. Another Dimension. Newsweek Magazine Online. January 19, 2009. Accessed January 30, 2009. <www.newsweek.com.com/id/178815>.

Waxman, Sharon. New York Times. Top Directors See the Future, and they Say It’s in 3D.

BMW BEING KREATIVE WITH FUTURISTIC CAR

What if, instead of wheels, cars ran on balls? The balls would be secured within sockets, powered by electric motors that allow for a 360 degree rotation, rather than the limited forward-backward movement of the existing wheel-based vehicle. While these types of high-concept futuristic cars have been featured in movies such as iRobot, leading car manufacturer BWM has been turning these fantasy cars into reality.
Head of BMW Group Design, Christopher E. Bangel, says the motivation behind such innovative designs is all about “breaking paradigms.” GINA (Geometric and Functions in “N” Adaptations) is BWM’s first “future car” model. Its specs include an amazing “skin” that maximizes its elasticity for flexible movement in ways that are only conceived in movie magic. This “skin” combined with a malleable metal frame is gives the car the ability to change shape and adopt to all traffic situations. One of the cars lifelike features are the cars headlights which create an illusion of it “opening its eyes.” The spoiler’s ultra flexible skin forms wrinkles as the car is activated, revealing the cars’ headlights. Such human-like features are where the future of cars is headed. The concept behind the car is to maximize freedom and creativity, and to give car owners the change to personalize their own vehicles.
Viral videos of GINA have already begun to circulate on YouTube, and should capture the attention of tech savvy, artsy consumers.

Big 3 Force Media to Shift Toward Digital Markets

In this downward economy it has become abundantly clear that a turn for the better is far from within reach. The Big 3 automakers (Ford, Chrysler, and GM) are fighting for survival and every affiliate company that depends upon their advertising dollars are cringing with fear; the television industry is one of such industries. The automotive industry “is the single-largest ad category for network TV, comprising about 11% of total ad sales for ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and the CW” (Littleton & Graser).
Perhaps the bad state of the economy is a well-timed catalyst for television executives who still operate under conventional business models. The future of television is changing right before our eyes.
In the first half of 2008, overall spending on auto blurbs on network TV was $1.24 billion, down 8.8% from the same period last year, according to ad biz monitor TNS Media Intelligence (Littleton & Graser).

Networks have to think creatively about other ways to generate revenue, and it seems technology may just be their meal ticket. No longer do we have to fit our schedule around our favorite TV shows. Audiences can TiVo, DVR, stream, or Download their favorite shows any time they want. The way of the future demands progressive, pragmatic, and out-of-the-box thinkers who can adapt to technological changes and capitalize on the new wave of convergent media, where audiences can also watch shows from their mobile phone or laptop.
While major studios, such as Fox, NBC Universal, and Warner Brothers have only recently hopped on the convergent media train in order to boost ad sales, smaller independent media companies such as Crawford Kreative Media Group (CKMG) have developed their interactive web business with the technology savvy viewer in mind. Be Kreative, a subdivision of CKMG, is a company that houses independent content from artist forums, including but not limited to, independent films, original television programming that have yet to air on a network, and music videos.
Be Kreative is currently in the pre-production phase of launching the premier webisode of their original program STARTUP. The show is a scripted dramedy based on the daily challenges, adventures, and fast-paced lifestyle of two savvy young entrepreneurs, Brandon (Crawford) and business partner Brian (Patrick White) as they attempt to bring their dream of a start-up dot com company into fruition.
The future success of the media industry depends on the ability of business executive’s ability to adapt to technological change, and their willingness to create interactive programming that serves the burgeoning lifestyles of digitally savvy consumers.
Brandon and Brian are a pair of risk-taking, unassumingly funny, and boldly resourceful hustlers who are on the cusp of this change, and who refuse to take no for an answer as they hustle their way towards becoming an influential part of the emerging digital revolution.
STARTUP is directed by Clifton Bell and Michael Regalbuto. For more information about Crawford Kreative Media Group, Be Kreative, and STARTUP visit www.crawfordkreative.com.

360 Deals May Save Record Industry From Copyright Infringement Cases

It seems the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has decided to finally stop trying to squeeze water out of a rock and cease suing groups of college students for illegally sharing copyrighted music. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, the RIAA spent over five years attempting to win these lawsuits against hundreds of students, on different campuses across the nation, in what seems to have been a massive digital witch hunt. The end result was not effective and left an after taste too sour to savor.
Director of information-technology policy at Cornell University, Tracy Mitran, stated that, “there are other ways to educate people than to arbitrarily hit a few of them over the head so hard that they had to drop out of school.” It makes you wonder what the RIAA was thinking when pursuing these lawsuits.
Despite the long legal process, it is good to know that somebody in the RIAA decided to change the light bulb and move forward in establishing a better solution to illegal music sharing. In light of this decision the music industry is working with commercial Internet-service providers, such as Youtube, in which the internet providers agree to take actions against customers who consistently trade music illegally.
The RIAA calls this a “graduated-response program,” which allows the copyright holders to notify the service providers of instances of copyright infringement on their networks. Under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), a mere allegation of copyright infringement on the Internet can result in content removal – silencing a creator before any misuse is proven.
YouTube has been fighting Viacom for months against charges of copyright infringement over user-uploaded clips. In a similar case, the unprecedented decision by a U.S. district court judge to dismiss a copyright infringement case against video-sharing site Veoh definitely gives YouTube hope of winning their battle, (although their case is still pending) along with all other user-generated sites.
As the industry attempts to find new strategies to maintain control, the introduction of 360 deals also known as multiple rights deals, is an attempt to unify revenue streams that the artist and label accrue. “360 deals are contracts that allow a record label to receive a percentage of the earnings from ALL of a band’s activities rather than just record sales” (McDonald). Under 360 deals record labels are allowed a percentage profit margin of sales from avenues such as concerts, merchandise, endorsements, and ringtones – all of which record labels would have no right to under a standard record contract. The benefit for the band (we hope, although the scale points to the contrary) is that they get an over-all “branding package” from the label rather than a simply a “push for sales” contract.
What this also means is that artists who choose not to sign an exclusive deal with record labels and instead opt for the 360 deal are viewed as well-rounded “products” that can be marketed, distributed, and sold in similar ways to any other product “(hello, High School Musical toothbrush line)”? (McDonald).
The speed with which technology is changing allows artist to have more control over there own music, giving them opportunities to promote themselves digitally via YouTube, iTunes, and MySpace.

Given all these resources for self-promotion, artists do not the backing of major labels to “hit it big” in today’s technology savvy consumer market. One example is Soljah Boy, who became a big hit mainly through the use of posting YouTube videos. His “crank that” movement became contagious across the board with people making remixed homemade videos of his song. Major labels have been in great need of a new business strategy, and it seems as though the 360 deals are an attempt to get these labels back in the game.

It’s More! More! More! More application and usage options for multi-tasking cell phone users. On October 2008 Google launched its latest project , the T-mobile G1 Phone. My initial reaction to the Google G1 phone? It isn’t pretty. However, the software and strategy demonstrates enormous vision that is shaking up the mobile phone industry. Google’s G1 is a serious competitor to Appple’s iPhone, as many of the ideas behind the G1 are similar to its competitor. Like the iPhone the device has a large touch screen, web browsing ,and a built in multi-media hub.
The T-Mobile G1 is the first phone in the market to use the Android operating system (an open source platform on which the different applications for the phone are built). The launch of Android is an entirely new mobile phone operating system, making Google a leader in innovation. This open source software enables innovation within the mobile industry – opening the door of creative possibilities for application developers.
While Apple iPhone is recognized for its sleek style, the G1 was designed with functionality in mind. Its advantage over the iPhone include its slide out keyboard, and Internet connection capabilities. The phone connects to the internet via either 3G mobile phone network or wi-fi hotspots, allowing for greater connection flexibility and availability. Users also have the option of using either a keyboard or touch screen, depending on their preference. The slide out keyboard is slightly heavier than the iPhone but still more user-friendly than the iPhone, allowing for quick e-mailing and a great deal of web browsing.
The verdict? Although not as “beautiful” as the Apple iPhone G1’s application capabilities and diversity in phone function make it highly attractive!

CELL PHONES PROVE VITAL FOR DEVELOPING NATIONS
While most developing countries missed out on the initial web boom, due to lack of internet infrastructure, the introduction of cell phones has bridged the gap between the developing world and the West. Mobile device users who were isolated from the world-wide-web, due to limitations of their demographic location, now have the opportunity to connect with and explore the internet via their cell phones.
The growth of mobile phone usage in developing nations (particularly in China, Russia, Indonesia, and South Africa) has far surpassed expectation. Over 73 million or 29% of China’s cell phone users connect to the internet via their mobile devices. Statistics project that in the coming years developing nations will produce more cell phone users than the West.
Mobile web usage has impacted developing countries beyond social networking and communication; it has also enabled business transactions. In East Africa, for example, Mobile Banking has become popular. M-Pesa – a new mobile payment service introduced by Safaricom, allows subscribers to deposit money via airtime sales-agents and send funds to each other via text messages. Taxi drivers can accept payment without having to carry cash. Another developing trend within developing countries is the use of mobile phones for academic research. Students use their mobile web browsers to obtain research information for their studies.
The World Wide Consortium (WC3) is one of the companies focusing on the use of the web as a platform for socio-economic development.WC3 recognizes that social change can only occur once these countries can keep up with the web evolution. In order to help these countries achieve this goal WC3 hopes to further develop mobile data services that are available over the phone. It no longer matters if you live in the in the city or the village; the ability to communicate and interact beyond your immediate surroundings is made possible by simply owning a cell phone.
As a younger generation of sophisticated mobile-web users emerges the variety of mobile web services is sure to increase.