I need to show my knowledge and understanding through case study material, although they do not need to be equally covered. I will be assessed on my ability to illustrate production, distribution, exhibition and consumption through two relevant case studies.
The set question:
- Cross media convergence/ synergy
- Marketing products
- Success and failure of marketing strategies
- Promotional strategie to sell to an audience
- Cross media/ marketing/ global vs local
- Technology has changed
- Media ownership- who owns who?
- My own experiences
Cross media convergence= Everything on one device
- Mobile telephone
- DVD player
- Camera
- Pager
- Internet browser
- Music player
- Game console
- Storage on the cloud
- Harddrive device
If one company owns everything this could lead to problems
Synergy= two or more things working together to make 'the whole' stronger/better
For a film, within the same month;
The film, TV programmes, sound track, computer games, toys, promotional merchandise, magazine articles
Globalisation:
Making the world one market place
The internet has no national boundaries and is free
Question Example:
How has the media convergence and synergy played a part in the Media Area you have studied?
Set Answer:
Always the same, institution in control, selling more product more efficiently
Always audience= more access, more convenience, more involved with the product
Production:
The Avengers- The characters within the film are characters in other films, such as 'iron man' this makes it more exciting as each of the characters are able to meet other super heroes from other films. There are also many well known actors/ actresses involved in the film.
The Woman in Black- Daniel Radcliffe is well known for his acting as Harry Potter.
Distribution:
The Avengers- Merchandise, such toys and t-shirts to advertise the film. Billboards to advertise the upcoming of the film so a wider audience knew about it. There would be interviews with the main characters, like Mark Ruffalo and Scarlett Johansson so they are able to promote the film globally.
The Woman in Black- Used posters some with Daniel Radcliffe and some without to appeal to more people, whether they are Harry Potter fans or not. Interviews with Daniel Radcliffe to promote the film.
Audience:
The Avengers- Cinema, box office, DVD, Blu-ray,
The Woman in Black- Cinema, box office, DVD, Blu-ray,
Practice Essay:
The two films I have studied, The Avengers and The Woman in Black, both use media convergence and synergy within their film companies. The Avengers was made by Disney and Marvel studios, and due to the fact that there were many well- known actors/actresses involved in the film, such as Mark Ruffalo and Scarlett Johansson. Many of the characters were also the main characters in other films, for example 'iron man'. I feel that The Avengers used more synergy and media convergence than The Woman in Black because it was produced on a much larger scale. The Woman in Black used the fact that Daniel Radcliffe had just finished the Harry Potter sequences to their advantage as it creates a sequel effect from the Harry Potter films. Cross Creek and Hammer pictures made the film.
Synergy is when two or more things work together to make the outcome stronger and better as a whole, for films an example of this may be cinema showing and merchandise. For Avengers this was used a lot as they used billboards, magazine articles, promotional merchandise, posters and toys all to promote the film. Both films had the film released in the cinema and then on DVD/ Blu-ray. The Avengers had the main characters interviewed globally to encourage people to watch the film and for The Woman in Black Daniel Radcliffe was often interviewed. Disney often created the whole image with the use of merchandise, such as pencil cases with The Avengers on it. However there was limited merchandise for The Woman in Black, there was only posters and a few t-shirts this is due to the film being owned by a smaller production company, although the t-shirts were mainly based around the book or the play, therefore the main form of merchandising was just posters. There is no built in audience, only the Harry Potter fans(this defines its target audience), although there is a wide set audience for The Avengers which is why this was of a higher cost.
Both films were exhibited in different ways, The Avengers was shown in i-max and 3-D shown as a huge will looked up as the one to see, however in the UK the title of the film had to be changed to 'The Avengers Assemble'. Other films would delay their release so it was not released the same time as The Avengers so more people would be more likely to see their film. The film was the most popular selling DVD of the year and made $200.3 million within its opening weekend.
The Woman in Black was a medium sized British which had a huge opening based on the fact that Daniel Radcliffe had just finished Harry Potter. They had to edit the film to make it suitable for for 12 year olds, the fact that they made it as scary as they could for 12 year olds made people want to see the film more. The fact that they made the film seemed like it could of been a 15 attracted a wider audience and it could generate more people to come and see it. They had a big premiere for its opening (one of the biggest premieres for a British film), made $20 million in the first week.
Both films are released in different orders, they are released firstly in the cinema, then Blu-ray, DVD, Sky, Netflix, downloads and will be released finally on the TV last. However to watch it on TV you may have to wait 1-2 years for it be shown. Through these staggered way of releasing the film they are able to advertise each of the ways the upcoming film is being shown to attract a wider audience. The Woman in Black had a shorter lifetime of showing the film than The Avengers, the film was shown on general TV just after a year the film was first released.
The Avengers was on a much bigger scale and had a lot more money spent on it, from more merchandise to advertising. The film has staggered stages but has a much longer lifetime than The Woman in Black, the film was produced and still hasn't been shown on general TV.
In 2012 media convergence was something the larger media companies were attempting although there are too many companies trying to get people to do media convergence, such as Netflix, Amazon, Sky, Marvel, Disney. This leads to too many companies needing to be negotiated with which makes it hard to be achieved as it is safer to spread the risk of losing money around rather than investing all the money into one company.
Both films were exhibited in different ways, The Avengers was shown in i-max and 3-D shown as a huge will looked up as the one to see, however in the UK the title of the film had to be changed to 'The Avengers Assemble'. Other films would delay their release so it was not released the same time as The Avengers so more people would be more likely to see their film. The film was the most popular selling DVD of the year and made $200.3 million within its opening weekend.
The Woman in Black was a medium sized British which had a huge opening based on the fact that Daniel Radcliffe had just finished Harry Potter. They had to edit the film to make it suitable for for 12 year olds, the fact that they made it as scary as they could for 12 year olds made people want to see the film more. The fact that they made the film seemed like it could of been a 15 attracted a wider audience and it could generate more people to come and see it. They had a big premiere for its opening (one of the biggest premieres for a British film), made $20 million in the first week.
Both films are released in different orders, they are released firstly in the cinema, then Blu-ray, DVD, Sky, Netflix, downloads and will be released finally on the TV last. However to watch it on TV you may have to wait 1-2 years for it be shown. Through these staggered way of releasing the film they are able to advertise each of the ways the upcoming film is being shown to attract a wider audience. The Woman in Black had a shorter lifetime of showing the film than The Avengers, the film was shown on general TV just after a year the film was first released.
The Avengers was on a much bigger scale and had a lot more money spent on it, from more merchandise to advertising. The film has staggered stages but has a much longer lifetime than The Woman in Black, the film was produced and still hasn't been shown on general TV.
In 2012 media convergence was something the larger media companies were attempting although there are too many companies trying to get people to do media convergence, such as Netflix, Amazon, Sky, Marvel, Disney. This leads to too many companies needing to be negotiated with which makes it hard to be achieved as it is safer to spread the risk of losing money around rather than investing all the money into one company.
