Final Theme 3

Theme 3
Every form of technology that's become digital has also been transformed by its users/audience.Explain how at least three "old" media ( Books, tv, film, radio, newspapers) have adapted to new digital media forms, and how they have been changed by the process of becoming digital. Also describe the ways people use and change digitized media as consumers. Show some examples on your blog. Which "old" media do you think have promising futures in digital form, and which do you expect will die out soon? Support your answer with good arguments.

As Marshall MacLuhan would say, this “old” media is cold. As our society technologically advances each day, we crave for a bigger, better, clearer and most importantly - easier way to receive information. The convenience of having everything digitized makes receiving information much faster and more convenient. Instead of ordering a book online and waiting for it to ship to your house – download it. Instead of buying the entire CD or waiting for that ONE song to play on the radio – download it. Instead of having to run out to buy the newspaper to get the news…. You get my point. Society today is so used to getting what they need by clicking away on their laptop – it may seem pointless and inconvenient using “old” media.
Imagine carrying around 350 books. Imagine carrying around something as small as one book that weighs less and has 350 books stored inside of it. Which would you rather do? Whether it be flipping through pages or scrolling through them, words are being read. Books are an “old” media which is now rapidly becoming universally digitized. With technologies such as the Amazon Kindle, Sony E-Reader, iPad and now the Nook – carrying around a book is almost a hassle. All these devices can just as easily display text as a book can but they are more convenient in size, weight, portability and clarity. With some of these devices, you can make the reading experience more personal by altering text size, screen brightness etc. The information is the same; it’s the medium and the experience that is altered. Electronic, digitized books are a hot media that has a promising future.

Another “old” media that is digitized is television and film. If you missed your favorite television program and you forgot to DVR it, there is always another way to watch it. Most shows are now available online once the episode is aired. Specific websites like Hulu.com along with regular station websites like ABC.com air television programs and stream them directly from their website. One would think that this may negatively affect advertisers since live programs aren’t being watched, but there are still advertisements on the digital form as well. As of now the convenience of logging on to the station’s website to access your favorite program is fantastic, it also negatively affects the industry as well. The new digitized shows can be ripped directly off of the website thus losing online sales and DVD sales. If every episode is available with a few clicks, what is the point of purchasing past seasons on DVD or Blu Ray? The industry has a promising future UNTIL these companies notice a steady drop in sales.

One last soon to be “old” media that is getting digitized is magazines. Instead of having to run out and purchase the latest issue of US weekly, it can be downloaded straight to your iPad. With a beautiful 10x8in high definition screen size, you can still view all that is offered in a magazine at your fingertips as long as you have some WiFi internet access. Signing up for a subscription to your favorite magazine and having it automatically download and save to your iPad is going to flourish. Flipping or scrolling through the pages is even more convenient and this might even leave an opportunity to view videos and click on links alongside the pictures to give a more flashy entertaining experience. Once the iPad becomes more affordable (and in stock!) it will be the best way for magazines to be purchased in subscription or single issue form.

An issue that is possible with digitized media is possibility to change the media.
If one can change the words to a novel, what good would the novel be if it displayed false information? Another issue with digitized media is the accessibility. Instead of purchasing a song or video off of iTunes, you can either torrent or rip it. Copies can be made and profits will drop. Besides that, the convenience of digitizing media will only improve the quality and ease of use.