I was following a random train of thought on my way to work today and latched upon an idea that had been simmering somewhere in the back of my brain for a while. All my methods of methods of media entertainment have become convergent, more or less.
I don't watch TV anymore, atleast not on the ol' boob tube (Love that phrase). What's the alternative you may ask? Well I download episodes of interesting series. Babylon 5 for instance (A gem of a sci-fi series that deserves a post all its own). What about games? That too. Movies? Ditto. Music? Started ages back!
I still go to watch a movie at a theatre once in a very blue moon but its more of a social exercise than entertainment. I'm not saying its easy or particularly expedient but I watch what I want, when I want. Same for goes for gaming.
What does that really mean for the future of MSM? (MainStream Media) To be honest i'm not sure that it's the end of MSM, but there is some kind of major change in the pipeline. And MSM, as we know it, will cease to exist.
I don't watch TV anymore, atleast not on the ol' boob tube (Love that phrase). What's the alternative you may ask? Well I download episodes of interesting series. Babylon 5 for instance (A gem of a sci-fi series that deserves a post all its own). What about games? That too. Movies? Ditto. Music? Started ages back!
I still go to watch a movie at a theatre once in a very blue moon but its more of a social exercise than entertainment. I'm not saying its easy or particularly expedient but I watch what I want, when I want. Same for goes for gaming.
What does that really mean for the future of MSM? (MainStream Media) To be honest i'm not sure that it's the end of MSM, but there is some kind of major change in the pipeline. And MSM, as we know it, will cease to exist.
2 comments:
Nah.
MSM (you need something that won't be so easily confused and/or linked to Microsoft or MSN) is going to be around for quite a while, yet. Even in the coming generations there are too many people who won't want to sit in front of the computer when they get home (chances are they've been doing it for 8+ hours at work, already). Besides, would you rather sit in your comfortable chair in your living room, watching a movie on your big screen HD TV with surround sound, etc., etc., or at your desk peering into a 21" monitor? At the end of the day, when people throw a party or invite someone over, they'll turn to the TV or a sound system with speakers the size of small cars.
Plus, there's a need for centralization. Basically, a common platform. The free market works against that. Case in point: Nintendo, Xbox, Playstation, etc. The computer may serve as a link between these - your basic server, if you will - but it won't replace them. In short, the computer is going to do what it's always been doing: facilitating. Computers really aren't all that convenient, either. They've got a service now that allows you to download movies, instead of going out to rent them or mail ordering them. Which is well and good. But, again, you'll probably end up watching it from your computer. Meh. And what happens if you want to take the movie over to a friend's place? That means you still need to rent or buy the physical media.
There are ways to get around all these (you can hook your computer up to the TV, burn the movie to a DVD, etc.) but those solutions are more than the average guy knows or cares to involve himself in. While there may be ways to make everything run through the computer (why not just sell emulation software for $100 or so that allows people to play Xbox or PS games on their PCs?), these industries have far too much invested to do away with their traditional way of doing business. The smart ones are, instead, looking for ways to make the computer enhance their services.
Also, don't forget that, at the user end, stuff like cable/satellite TV is very simple. You buy the TV, you plug in the cable, presto! Hundreds of channels. Computers require considerably more user knowledge and cables. The main stream isn't going to change all that quickly. Certainly not as long as they continue catering to the lowest common denominator.
Bollocks!
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