Napster, Youtube, Itunes, Hulu, Limewire, Megavideo... what do all of these have in common, they are free (or were free once upon a time). Henry Jenkins book "Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Converge" is a book I am currently reading about these media outlets. It is a book showing the struggle of the corporate world struggling to keep the rights of what is theirs. It deals with movie leaks coming out before their release date, music getting illegally downloaded, and movies getting streamed straight to your computer and the producers don't make a dime.
I can honestly say that I am one of these culprits. The first thing I got on my first computer in 7th grade was Napster (Oh Napster how I miss you). Since Napster I and many people have never looked back. I can count on one hand how many times since Napster I have gone INTO a CD store and bought a CD. Napster opened up a world of free media and the flood gates are now open.
The cool thing about these media sites is that they will continue to evolve. I had no idea what "Youtube" was when I got home from my mission. The only place I knew to get video's online pre- "Youtube" was a site called ebaumsworld.com. Ebaumsworld.com started putting commercials on their site to generate a profit, so "Youtube" took their idea and made it better, plus no commercials. We continue to see this evolution. "Youtube" now wants to generate a profit so they are putting commercials on their website, so now people are starting to gravitate to "Megavideo." We see this processs in all of these media outlets. "Hulu" is starting to charge and fee so people are now going to alternative sites to watch free shows like "ch131.com."
Metallica, The Beatles, and Aerosmith were three huge bands that were strongly opposed to Napster and other entities like it. But they have since realized that to survive in this world you have to go viral. They have since then gone on Itunes, (Thank goodness).
3 comments:
Hey, I referenced this post in my blog (http://amywhitakerwrites.blogspot.com/2011/05/life-is-one-big-remix.html). I really like what you have to say about Convergence Culture, and I feel it corresponds a lot with what I've read in Remix.
One reason I think that so many people illegally download is because distribution of movies and things is so slow. Why wait to see the new Thor movie if I can download it and watch it on my 50" TV right now? (I saw Thor in the theater opening night btw. Awesome!) Also, TV series that take almost a whole year to become available on DVD or Netflix. People don't want to wait that long to watch shows like Dexter or True Blood or Dr. Who. They want it now. The entertainment industry is starting to evolve the way the distribute, but they aren't doing it fast enough or well enough to satisfy a rising generation accustomed to instant access and streaming content.
This is something that is so interesting to me, because it has become so culturally acceptable that copyright laws can't go on like this. Does the author give any ideas on how to solve the dilemma?
Post a Comment