POST 2 – DATA

Like any technology, apps can be used to gather data. This data can then be analysed and shared/sold to companies who require the type of research data an app such as ‘WishShare’ can provide. This sharing of information and data selling is the way ‘WishShare’ will produce a profit. In turn, it will also help companies develop their products in a way which tailors directly to their target market. However, there are a number of data types and pieces of information which can be gathered from ‘WishShare’, therefore, it is vital that data is managed and filtered before being shared outside of ‘WishShare’ to ensure private information is kept confidential. 

The following list is comprised of data types which will be deleted. Data such as these have little to no use and therefore are not needed. Nor is the data desirable to those wanting to purchase data.

• Obsolete versions
• Third-party data
• Intermediate files
• temporary/auxiliary files

In terms of raw data, certain information such as private/personal details will be excluded from sales meaning GDPR cannot be breached and those who purchase the data will be unable to identify a user beyond their number. This will include the following data:

• Telephone numbers
• First names 
• Surnames
• E-mail addresses
• Dates of birth

The following list is comprised of data which will be kept and is useful to the app and its potential developments:

• Raw data
• Input data 
• Settings
• Consent documents
• software/model codes

As there is an abundance of data which can be gathered and shared, ‘WishShare’ will begin its data sharing by focusing on select data which coincide with one another and are considered some of the more desirable data areas to companies looking to develop, enhance or progress. For example, by purchasing the data they can use the information to design or modify their own apps, tailoring them to the activity of their target market. Below is a list of the initial data and sub-data which will be the focus during the early days of ‘WishShare’:

Initial data:

• Age
• Gender
• City
• Country 

Sub-data:

• Average number of times a user touches screen
• Average number of swipes
• Average number of scrolls
• Types of items added
• Average number of times a user accesses app
• Time user spends on app

‘WishShare’ collects data essential to the apps’ future developments. Using the data gathered, modifications to the design and layout of the app can be made. This allows for the app to update by seeing how users are interacting with the display. Another way in which the data will help future developments is that of data sales. By observing the data that the app gathers ‘WishShare’ can adjust, add or remove data depending on what they are producing the best information on or if the demand within the data market changes. This also means that the data can help expand the nature of the app in the future. Selling data to companies which require data from a country they aren’t based in or vice versa, ‘WishShare’ can become known amongst the international data traders. Another future development that can arise from the data provided by ‘WishShare’ is advertising. By analysing the trends in items each user adds, ‘WishShare’ could expand into promoting advertisements of similar products or brands. This would be a feature where companies pay to have items or their brand advertised on ‘WishShare’ allowing the app to choose the adverts for each user depending on their lists. In turn, the app would be encouraging users to become consumers of the companies in their advertisements. Other developments include expansion into the wedding and baby market where ‘WishShare’ can be used for registry and items can be removed when bought to avoid duplicates. 

The benefits of ‘WishShare’ are that it’s a quick and convenient way to shop for gifts with the addition of all lists being tailormade by the recipients. Competitors with similar concepts do exist, with few online wishlists being accessible to more than just the profile owner such as on sites such as Amazon (Bakkila, 2019). ‘EasyGift’ being one, however, ‘WishShare’ has the edge of being more user-friendly and therefore appeals to a more diverse age range who require navigational ease. 

REFERENCES

Working with data:Weeding data. (2019, December 19). Retrieved from https://library.bath.ac.uk/research-data/working-with-data/weeding-data 

How to monetize your data. (2019, August 19). Retrieved from https://www.lotame.com/how-to-monetize-your-data/ 

How businesses are collecting data (And what they are doing with it). (2018, August 3). Retrieved from https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/10625-businesses-collecting-data.html

EasyGifts App. (2019). Retrieved from 

https://easygiftsapp.com/ 

9 Gift-Giving Apps That Make It So Easy to Find the Perfect Present. (2019, April 30). Retrieved from

https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/holidays/gift-ideas/g27194384/best-gift-giving-apps/

POST 1 – The App ‘WishShare’

‘WishShare’ is an app which aims to fill a gap in the market. This free app fits into the niche category of gifts and people being able to access other accounts which is a concept that has become more desirable in recent years. The app can be used on IOS and Android devices and targets all ages provided they own or have access to a device such as a tablet or mobile phone.

The purpose of the app is to provide people with a digital platform in which they can create a collection of gift ideas for themselves and give access to their family and friends ultimately making it easier to get gifts for people which they actually want and whilst cutting out those awkward conversations where you have to keep asking what a person wants and they don’t know. 

Each feature following has been incorporated into ‘WishShare’ to enhance the user experience:

• Create a wishlist 
• View other profiles 
• Item purchase information
• FAQ page 
• Live Chat 
• Shareable 
• Easily accessible 
• Available on IOS and Android devices 
• Personalisation
• Age accessible 

How does it work?

Once ‘WishShare’ is installed, users must create an account. Once entering the required information the login page will reload and users can now login. Upon logging in users account page will appear. This is where items can be added and deleted from wishlists using the add item and bin icons. Users can personalise their profiles using the edit button on the sidebar. The sidebar is where users can view profiles, access settings, FAQs and LIVE CHAT and view/add friends. When clicking on the icons users will be redirected to the corresponding page. To view another members list or profile users select them in the sidebar and are redirected to their page. To learn more about an item users select it and are redirected to its individual page where they can see images of the item, its name and a list of places and prices where the item can be located. 

‘McLuhan’s Tetrad’ suggests that all technologies have four effects on the ecosystem. It is important to review the app in correspondence with this model to identify if the app has the ability to be successful but also if it complies with the basis of technologies. The following describes how ‘WishShare’ works with ‘Tetrad’.

A key element in the success of an app is enhancement. “We shape our tools and therefore our tools shape us” (McLuhan, 1964). It is vital the app serves a purpose which is useful to those who will be using it. ‘WishShare’ allows for enhanced knowledge of the likes and desires of those they know, enabling them to purchase gifts or gather ideas with ease. ‘WishShare’ serves as an extension of a users memory as when they see an item they like they can add it to their list instantly meaning they don’t forget to write it down. It also enhances users abilities to store everything in one place and on hand wherever they are. Finally, the ability to share lists with other users makes for easier access to the information the user is seeking. 

The second element is what does ‘WishShare’ reverse, meaning it must have a long term goal or impact. ‘WishShare’ ultimately reverses two things. The first being the difficult nature of trying to find the right gifts for people without the constant asking or uncertainty. The second is to ease the experience of shopping using technology to make it more enjoyable through the use of an app such as ‘WishShare’.

Another element is if ‘WishShare’ retrieves anything. ‘WishShare’ allows for the meaning to be brought back into gift-giving. Over the years gift-giving has become less about giving someone something that means something to them or is special and more about filling the bag. By having an app like ‘WishShare’ on the market the options users can choose from are all special or something the individual really wants, therefore, the meaningful/thoughtful gift-giving is more prominent in society. 

The last element is what does ‘WishShare’ make obsolete. ‘WishShare’ removes using paper lists which is lost or misplaced easily, replacing it with a 24/7, digitally accessible version.

REFERENCES

McLuhan, M. (1964). Understanding media: The extensions of man. Toronto: Toronto Education Quarterly.

Data protection in the EU. (2019, December 2). Retrieved from https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/data-protection/data-protection-eu_en

How to make an app (In 9 steps). (2019, October 22). Retrieved from https://learnappmaking.com/how-to-make-an-app/ 

McLuhan’s Tetrad. (2014, December 19). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRnexsrlSdA 

Media Industries Assignment 2 – Essay

 

In this assignment, I will be discussing the various aspects of the French media industry. In doing so, I will be researching multiple French organisations and forming an overview of the French provision within the public service media sector, the private media sector, and the community media sector. Additionally, I will be discussing certain laws and regulations within the French media industry.

Researching the French public service sector has shown that the sector is comprised of multiple organisations. One of the leading organisations is Radio France, a public service broadcaster, founded in 1975. The second of which is France Médias Monde, a rebirth of its predecessor company the Société de l’audiovisuel extérieur de la France (SAEF) which manages television, radio and online international broadcasting and publishing of the top three French media groups and was founded in 2013. The third leading organisation is the Institut national de l’audiovisuel (INA), a vault storing all French radio and television audio-visual archives, founded in 1975. The fourth leading organisation is France Télévisions, a public national television broadcaster, originally founded in 1992 and reformed in 2000 as France Télévisions SA.

In France, the most popular media platform is television. The leading public broadcaster France Télévisions is an organisation which employs more than 9,900 people (France Télévisions Keeps Its Digital Audience Happy With Help From New Relic – case study) and is funded through a combination of advertising revenue and TV license fees (France profile – Media – BBC News Article 2017). The organisation operates a total of 6 channels which roughly 50% of the French population consumes each day. Additionally, this company is the largest organisation across all electronic devices in France and has a total of 18 million consumers monthly. France Télévisions formed a Numérique department which oversees and manages all digital aspects of the organisation from websites to telephone applications (France Télévisions Keeps Its Digital Audience Happy With Help From New Relic – case study). For a decade French radio and television were managed by the Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française. The Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française (RTF) was formed in 1949 to operate the country’s three public radio networks as well as the introduction of a public television service. (Public Broadcasting -France – Wikipedia 2018). In 1975 the organisation was separated into sections so that the three television channels would remain under the ownership of the French Government. This meant that the channels would all be under the same ownership but operate separately to one another.

The three organisations which France Médias Monde runs are RFI (Radio France International), France TV (TV news broadcaster) and TV5Monde (news and entertainment network). France Médias Monde is both a shareholder and partner of TV5Monde. The organisation currently broadcasts internationally in multiple languages (14) and provides information on world events using a variety of sources from magazines to debates. The company has a combined weekly audience of more than 90 million listeners and television viewers and brings in around 25 million visitors a month across all its media platforms (France Médias Monde – devex article).

In terms of future, the French public service media sector is set to see some changes as Radio France, France Télévisions and France Médias Monde are merging to form a ‘holding company’ (Focus On PSM – France – public media alliance article 2017). Although the merging of public service broadcasters has been applied to companies such as the BBC, there are many factors that will require consideration before a merge can happen. These factors include politics, HR (Human Resources), funding and the audience due to the 80-million-euro funding cut that the French public service media sector faces. In terms of how such a ‘holding’ will be run is dependent on the government as public service broadcasting organisations are to be reviewed.

 

The French private media sector has a multitude of organisations which has expanded the sector across all media platforms. In 1984, Canal+ (Channel Plus/Max) was launched and is a private French premium television channel. Canal+ is one of the most popular private television channels in France, with 100% of its ownership belonging to the Canal+ Group (a French film and television studio and distributor), which is owned by Vivendi SA. The channel broadcasts several types of programming which are mostly encrypted, however, unencrypted content is available for free viewing on Canal+ and satellite on Canal+ Clair. In 2013, the organisation bought the TV rights for the FIA Formula One World Championship at a rate of 29 million euros per annum. They also bought the rights for the English Premier League in the same year which is the most viewed football league worldwide (Canal+ – Wikipedia 2018). The organisation has expanded its reach into new markets over the years, gathering consumers in several countries including Africa, Europe, and Australia.

MTVFrance is one of the most popular private music channels and was launched in 2000 to provide consumers with 24-hour music/entertainment. MTVFrance was previously known as MTVF and 100% of its ownership belongs to Viacom International Media Networks Europe and broadcasts to several French-speaking countries – France, Belgium, Switzerland, Manaco, and Africa. In 2005, MTV Networks Europe launched MTVPulse and MTVIdol to expand their brand within France.  (MTV(France) – Wikipedia 2018). In 2007, the brand launched a subsidiary channel called MTVBase (France) which is an MTV network television channel which focuses on the hip-hop/R’n’B music genre and then began broadcasting pop and dance content from 2014 onwards to expand their brand further.

Euronews is one of the most popular European news channels worldwide. Euronews is a multilingual news service which was launched in 1993 and is owned by various shareholders. The Media Globe Networks owns a 53% share, NBC Universal owns a 25% share and European public broadcasters own a 22% share. The majority shareholder is Naguib Sawiris, an Egyptian businessman who owns his shares Media Globe Networks and is the chairman of the supervisory board of Euronews. In 1997, the British news broadcaster ITN bought a 49% share of Euronews from Alcatel – Alsthom for 5.1 million pounds(sterling). Shareholders of Euronews are represented by the SOCEMIE (Société Editrice de la Chaîne Européenne Multilingue d’Information EuroNews) consortium. The channel is produced by Euronews SA, its operating company which also holds the Euronews broadcasting licence. Euronews SA is co-owned by its ten founders. In 2012, the channel launched a radio version called Euronews Radio which is used to provide viewers with a direct simulcast to the tv channel is they are unable to watch the television channel, replacing ‘no comment’ segments with music (Euronews – Wikipedia 2018).

 

French community media is derived from unlicensed radio stations from the 1970’s and currently has around 588 stations in total. France was one of the first countries to introduce a regulatory and funding framework for French community radio and the FSER (Fonds de soutien à l’expression radiophonique). The FSER provides financial support to local radio stations in France and is the longest lasting system for this in Europe (Fonds de soutien à l’expression radiophonique – Wikipedia 2018). The FSER gathers funding from a tax of ad revenue of French commercial broadcasters. Community media broadcasters can get up to 50% of their funding from the FSER. The FSER is overseen by a committee of eleven people, including four representatives from the community radio sector (UNESCO – Community Media: A Good Practice Handbook – PDF – 2011).

In 1982, the law on Audio-Visual Communication was adapted, loosening the restrictions of broadcasting which liberated broadcasting on a whole and unrestricted the radio to private radio operators. In 1986, the Freedom of Communication law was formed, licensing the private broadcasting sector and set in motion that organisations are only eligible to claim for FSER funding if less than 20% of their radios revenue came from advertising and sponsorships. The French government takes a multitude of measures to ensure that the rights of French internet users are protected such as the 2004 Loi pour la Confiance dans l’Économie Numérique (LCEN – Law for Confidence in the Digital Economy) and created an internet censorship to help protect against copyright (Internet Censorship in France – Wikipedia 2017). France has a ‘3-strikes’ law to reduce any unlawful use of file sharing and if this law is broken continuously it will result in the individual facing technical implications such as a reduction in bandwidth, access suspensions, and even protocol blocking. In 2009, the Hadopi law was formed meaning any individual who is found illegally downloading content which has been copyrighted can be disconnected from the internet and given a 60-euro minimum fine which can be adjusted depending on the number/level of infractions. However, this law was demolished in 2013 over extreme controversy across France (France drops controversial ‘Hadopi Law’ after spending millions – The Guardian online article 2013). However, French anti-piracy is set to punish any sites that seek profit from copyrighted/pirated content.

The French Ecology Party had a role to play in the development of community radio. Free radio gained the support of the French Socialist Party and when it came into power, the new French government created a committee to license local radio – the RLP. For stations to become licensed they had to meet the set criteria – no advertisements, no setup networks, to transmit with limited power, to be constituted as non-profit associations. This resulted in 1,300 stations becoming licensed (Community Media: A Global Introduction by Ellie Rennie – Book – 2006). There are several regulatory bodies which regulate the French community media markets including CSA (Conceal Superior de l’Audiovisuel), a broadcasting regulator and ARCEP (L’Autorite de Regulation des Communications Electroniques et des Posters), an authority responsible for the regulation of electronic communications networks of France (OFCOM – Case studies on local and regional media outside the UK Annex 3- PDF – 2009).

 

APA References:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-17299010

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170808005983/en/Analyzing-Digital-Media-Industry-France-2017–

https://www.devex.com/organizations/france-medias-monde-65168

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canal%2B

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euronews

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_France

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_television_stations_in_France

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_of_France

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTV_(France)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_broadcasting#France

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fonds_de_soutien_%C3%A0_l%27expression_radiophonique

https://medialandscapes.org/country/france

https://newrelic.com/resources/case-studies

OFCOM – Case studies on local and regional media outside the UK – PDF – 2009

• https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/27413/international.pdf

https://www.publicmediaalliance.org/focus-psm-france/

Rennie, E. (2006). Community media: A global introduction. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/jul/09/france-hadopi-law-anti-piracy

• UNESCO – Community Media: A Good Practice Handbook – PDF – 2011 http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0021/002150/215097e.pdf

Media Industries Assignment 1 – Portfolio Blog Post 2 (Global North and Global South)

China has the largest, highest grossing and most profitable computer and video game market in the world since 2015.

The computer and video game industry does not follow a self-regulatory system like most countries. Instead, the industry is regulated by two government bodies: – the Ministry of Culture (MOC) and the State of Administration, Press, Publication, Radio, Film, and Television (SAPPRFT). The leading regulator is MOC which was established in September 1954, and recently dissolved on March 19^th, 2018. Due to the restrictions of laws and strict policies in China, the government-run regulatory agencies such as MOC help keep gaming content within the boundaries of the law and Chinese culture. The new regulations for 2017 were set to make the industry safer and better controlled with rules such as section 2.2 from the ‘Notice’ of the regulation report stating that it is a legal requirement for the online games businesses to obtain a license from the authorities to be able to operate. Additionally, regulations in China show that content and gameplay is both monitored and controlled by the regulatory services run by the government.

According to Atomico (a London-based venture capital firm), China is considered the “gamer capital of the world” which is a place previously held by the US. Research into the computer and video game industry in China has shown that gamers in China generated $24.4 billion of the industry’s $101.1 billion global revenue in 2016. The Atomico report research app Annie states that as much as 93% of all the money spent by Chinese gamers go to titles developed by Chinese based companies. Additionally, research suggests that currently, China accounts for 1/4 of the global computer and video game industry’s revenue. According to the statistics and figures gathered and provided by Statistica, gamers in China spent 15% of their leisure time playing computer or video games in 2016. While researching the industry in China, I came across a 2016 computer and video game industry report for the Chinese sector. According to Newzoo (a leading provider of market intelligence covering the global games market), in 2016 there were 558.5 million recorded gamers in China and 36% spend money on the computer or video games. Additionally, the report showed that in 2016 China had an online population of 788.8 million people and of that, 71/% played computer or video games. Newzoo also reported that the number of gamers in China was 199.8 million and on average each gamer spent $122 a year. In the chart below you can see a breakdown of the $24.4 billion total revenue for the Chinese computer and video game industry in 2016.

Sourced image from the Newzoo website report – link in references.

In terms of comparison, there are many key features that differ between the US and Chinese sectors of the computer and video game industry. There are also a few aspects in which they are similar as well.

The main difference between the Global South and Global North that I have selected within the industry I have chosen is the ways in which they are regulated and how they operate because of their regulations. The US must abide by laws and censorship acts etc, but the self-regulation allows for a large amount of content control and freedom for each organisation under the US industry making it easier for those organisations to do business. This differs largely from the Chinese regulation which is closely regulated by the Chinese government and therefore the organisations have a lot less freedom than the western US. China is known for its communist approach and having many of its platforms regulated and overseen by the Chinese government and so it is not surprising to find that the government oversees the computer and video game industry as well.

Previously, I mentioned the 2016 global revenue of the industry to be $101.1 billion. If you compare the revenue for this generated by the two countries, the US generated $30.4 billion which means that China fell behind by $6 billion. This statistic is surprising as China was named the top of the games industry and so would be expected to have gained the most revenue in 2016. Additionally, 56% of US gamers spent money on US developed games in 2016 which is far less than China’s 93%. Due to China being very strict with allowing access or integration of western gaming this statistic is not surprising to see. Although they differ widely in their freedom of content and regulation policies, one thing they do both have in common is popularity. Looking at the data I have discussed each country, although they operate very differently, has high numbers of gamers out of their population. They both are in the highest grossing section of the industry and have similar forms of gameplay available.

In conclusion, the US and China operate in very different ways due to their regulation but, they are leading the industry and are both considered to be at the very top of the industry.

References:

• http://www.theesa.com/article/us-video-game-industry-revenue-reaches-36-billion-2017/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_gaming_in_the_United_States
• http://www.theesa.com/article/u-s-video-game-industrys-economic-impact/
• https://www.out-law.com/page-5810
• http://www.theesa.com/public-policy/government-affairs/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_gaming_in_China
• https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-01/china-just-became-the-games-industry-capital-of-the-world
• http://daxueconsulting.com/video-games-market-in-china/
• https://www.statista.com/statistics/293304/number-video-gamers/
• https://newzoo.com/insights/infographics/chinese-games-market-2016/
• https://zhugeex.com/2016/12/chinas-new-online-gaming-regulations/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_Culture_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China

Media Industries Assignment 1 – Portfolio Blog Post 1 (Global North and Global South)

For this Assignment, I will be researching the video and computer games industry. This assignment will include key features and a comparison of two countries, one from the Global North and the other from the Global South. I will be focusing on the USA for the Global North and China for the Global South and how the industry in the two countries operate, their individual facts and figures including revenue market comparisons and how they are each regulated.

The computer and video games industry is one of the fastest growing entertainment industries in the US.

Within the US, there is no set legislation or government regulation, instead, there is a system of self-regulation. However, the self-regulation is governed by the ESRB (Entertainment Software Rating Board). The ESRB is a self-regulatory body for the interactive entertainment software industry and was established in 1994 by the ESA (Entertainment Software Association) which was formerly known as the IDSA (Interactive Digital Software Association). The ESRB independently applies and enforces ratings, advertising guidelines and online privacy principles adopted by the computer and video games industry. In forming the policies and regulations the ESA and ESRB engages policymakers from the national, state and local levels on a range of legislative and public policy issues.

In the first months of January 2017, the ESA provided a report on the 2016 computer and video games industry. The report includes data and information that has been gathered from research conducted by the ESA themselves alongside data from the ESRB, NPD (National Purchase Diary Panel) Group and the EEDAR (Electronic Entertainment Design and Research). According to the report, 67% of US households own devices that are used to play video games. Additionally, 65% of US households have at least one individual who plays three or more hours of video gaming per week. The report also states that the average age of a gamer in the US is 35 years old. Research provided for the report also indicates that women ages eighteen or over represent a significantly larger portion of the US gaming population than males under the age of eighteen. In 2016, the total consumers spent on the computer and video games industry was $30.4 billion. The table below provides a comparison of the growth percentage from 26 to 2017 and evidences where the sectors and how much the sectors contributed to the total revenue.

Sourced image taken from the ESA 2017 Report.

In the report 1/3 of the most frequent game players stated that they were “likely to buy Virtual Reality (VR) in the next year”. Figures also showed that 53% of the most frequent gamers who play multiplayer games said that they play video or computer games at least once a week, playing an average of six hours online with others and five hours playing with others in person. Additionally, in 2016 of the 1,491 games ratings assigned by the ESRB, 67% of these fell into the classifications of E or E10 or above. The computer and video games industry has contributed to the US economy in a few ways, however, the two main ways are providing economic contributions to the state and employment to thousands of citizens. The following table covers the top ten states that have provided economic contributions to the industry in 2016.

State	Developer Group Direct Employees	Direct + Indirect Employees	Average Compensation	Economic Contribution to State
California	10,201	63,718	$103,071	$2.78 billion
Texas	3,834	17,878	$101,349	$764.9 million
Washington	2,794	12,833	$99,964	$595.2 million
New York	1,267	8,137	$94,924	$378.5 million
Massachusetts	1,137	4,174	$93,174	$179.6 million
Florida	1,007	4,601	$89,540	$171.5 million
Illinois	877	4,032	$92,453	$158.6 million
Pennsylvania	617	2,142	$87,922	$83.1 million
Oregon	552	2,359	$91,130	$111 million
Colorado	552	2,984	$87,922	$107.1 million

Sourced image taken from the ESA website – link in references.

Bibliography:

• https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/media
• http://www.symbols-n-emoticons.com/2013/04/thinking-smiley.html
• http://clipartbarn.com/thinking-clip-art_6436/
• https://www.megapixl.com/3d-man-holding-magnifying-glass-illustration-42959312
• https://pl.123rf.com/photo_73053047_stock-photo.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uses_and_gratifications_theory
• https://www.learning-theories.com/uses-and-gratification-theory.html
• https://www.warc.com/content/article/media_research_planning_for_context/99112
• http://www.pewinternet.org/2018/03/01/social-media-use-in-2018/
• https://www.smartinsights.com/social-media-marketing/social-media-strategy/new-global-social-media-research/

Media Log 3 – The Evaluation

After conducting this piece of research, my daily life is surrounded by media and that media does play a rather large part in my life. I am engaging and interacting with media products and platforms throughout my entire day. Ironically, I wake up to engage with a media product (phone alarm) and I go to sleep interacting with that same product (phone alarm) each day. Since I began studying media I have questioned what the world along with myself would do without media on the level we have it now and even contemplate what life would be like if media simply didn’t exist. To me, media is a source of entertainment, interaction, socialisation, learning and so much more.

One stereotype I was hoping to reduce was that the younger generations are so digitalised that we do not consume any old school media such as print. I hoped that by recording down when I engaged with posters or billboards I could prove that this isn’t the case but unfortunately, I did not engage or take notice in any print advertisements or print media. However, I also skipped adverts on YouTube when listening to music and so I in fact also did not engage with any digital advertisements either. This minor observation suggests to me that it is simply advertisements that I personally do not engage with as they are always considered an interruption or distraction from what we are aiming to engage with and so I do not aim to take notice of them but in fact aim to avoid them.

If I were to refer to a theory to help evaluate my research, I would say that the 1969 Uses and Gratifications theory by McQuail is interesting to look at in relation. The theory is known for considering the audience as being ‘active’ consumers of media and demonstrates this using 4 separate categories which can then be paired up to produce the 2 sectors – Uses and Gratifications. The Uses are the ways we use media along with the purposes and functions it serves whereas Gratifications is the ways that the media gratifies our desires, needs and wants. The 4 smaller categories are: Surveillance, Personal Identity, Personal Relationships and Diversion. Surveillance is the knowledge of the world around us. Personal Identity is to use in developing and expressing our identity. Personal Relationships is to use in building and sustaining our personal relationships. Diversion is to escape, gain pleasure or create a fantasy etc. (Taken from Media Audiences Week 6 Uses, Gratifications and Functions Lecture – used notes I took from the lecture).

Sourced Image: https://pl.123rf.com/photo_73053047_stock-photo.html

I would say that the 4 categories from McQuail’s theory do coincide with the ways in which my research has shown I consume the media. Surveillance being about the knowledge of the world around you I would say that in the recordings I have been accessing information on finding out room and building locations for my lectures and when on YouTube I listen to documentaries about the gun control protests happening in America indicating that I consume media that does provide me with knowledge of the world around me both globally and locally. I often find myself researching global disasters or movements that are happening in the current news media so that I am aware and knowledgeable of what is going on around me. Personal Identity for my is reflected through my social media for example, when I posted on Snapchat a video of my sister and I playing around with the filters. I would also say that it is heavily reflected through the music and television shows I interact with as these make up a huge part of my personality and what I like and dislike. For example, most of the television shows I watch are very Sci-Fi/Futuristic or fantasy themed because I personally really enjoy the fictional atmosphere they provide. I would be classed as a bit of a ‘Supernatural Geek’ because of the shows I watch such as Stranger Things because I have a huge fondness for shows that are very different to the world we live in today but I also think it is an interesting part of my personality and people may not think from simply looking at me that I would enjoy those genres especially not the extent I do, which I do not think is a bad thing. People should not be judged on their appearance or their interests alone. Personal Relationships for me would be the use of social media because it is my way of getting in touch with my friends such as when I arrange meeting and walking to university with my friend Catherine. I use Facebook Messenger the most to message my friends on group chats such as the Media ones, but I also use Instagram because I get to see visual updates on how my friends who I do not get to see often are doing and what is going on in their lives. Almost everyone my age has social media and so it is often the easiest way when we are all living in separate places to keep us in contact and keep our relationships going. Diversion, watching television shows and listening to music is my form of escapism. The fantasy element to the shows I watch helps keep me distracted from all the stress of being a student and all the negative that is happening in the world. Music I always sing along to and I find that when I sing I feel free and am taken away from everything mundane and living in the moment and so it is my escape into moments of pure passion for something I love that fills me with joy. As you can see in my log I have to listen to music and have a tv show on at least once a day to escape from reality for a while.

This research assignment has helped raise my awareness to how easily I personally take the media I am surrounded with for granted. I consume an incredibly large amount of media each day and it is insane to think about what life would be like if it all suddenly went away. Since moving to University I do feel my media usage has gone up because I do have so much time off, but I also feel that looking back over the past couple of year that my usage has increase because of the advancements in technology that have been made. I think that technology is a huge part of life in society today and that each year media is becoming more and more dependant upon by myself, my peers and simply the world around me. I believe that the worlds media usage will continue to grow as the technological developments expand. If I were to have conducted this experiment on someone younger, I believe that their media usage would be a lot higher than mine and that their log would appear very differently to my own.

Overall, I would say I have conducted a successful piece of research as not only did I make predictions that were correct, but I also surprised myself with the results I found, and I really enjoyed doing it. I think that I could’ve done a more detailed table if I were to redo the project and maybe included some other media platforms into the table but I am proud of the data I collected as it was not an easy task and I had to stick to the basics because it was the only realistic way of gathering the research I needed with the highest level of accuracy I could provide at that time.

Media Log 2 – My Findings

I have finally finished my Media Log and am able to produce a general review and gather an informed indication of what my media usage is on a university daily basis. When conducting the log, I was met with a few obstacles as expected. It was simple to note down the media I was consuming on my mobile phone because holding my phone was a reminder to note down the usage, but I did find a substantial level of complexity in filling out the official table and transferring the quick notes onto the table whilst expanding them one by one. This was a very time consuming and tedious task which I underestimated until I began tackling it.

I ended up recording my data on my mobile and inserting and expanding the quick notes into a more detailed table at the end of the 3 days using the template provided to us on Shu Space, making slight tweaks to the wording and changing the orientation of the table to landscape to provide ease to those who attempt to read the data. For example, I decided that I wanted the ‘Time and Duration’ column to be two separate columns as I wanted the data to be more evenly spread out and as clear as possible. I also added ‘What I Am Doing’ to the end of type of media as I felt that I would relate better to it and that it was more suited to my personal preferences to understand terms better and so on.

My finding have provided me with a few different summary observations which are a mixture of predicted and unforeseen outcomes. My first observation is that as predicted most of my media consumption is Netflix and watching television shows. I tend to watch multiple episodes at a time and will spend hours back to back watching shows on Netflix. Although I expected this finding, I was pleased to deduce that I tend to watch Netflix and have shows on whilst I am doing work and so I am encouraged that I consume a large amount of Netflix within reason to some extent. I am a very big fan of watching shows consecutively and I do feel that the findings do make sense because I do enjoy both as background noise and as downtime to experience the marvels of fantasy television. I would say that since moving to university I tend to watch more Netflix when I am in my downtime as I like to wind down from doing work and being at university all day but that this is due to the large amounts of free time I have in the week as I have been struggling to find work and I am only timetabled to be at university 2 and ¼ days of the week. When thinking about what I do when I am bored it is usually indulging in a tv series or two.

 

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My next finding is that on the days I have university lectures or seminars I tend to be very good at low level social media and/or media usage whilst I am at university. I found this to be a happy surprise as I expected to have used social media a lot more when I am between lecturers but because I am at in seminars and lectures I understand and it only makes sense that there are large gaps in the day where I am not actively engaging or engaging with media that I am aware of. This was a finding that was surprising to me but in looking at the time frames of the gaps I am not surprised as I try to not be on social media or using media if I am in lectures out of respect.

Another finding which I found to be surprising was that my days, especially those when I have university are very similar and so I feel I am happy that my life has a sense of order and consistency to it as I expected the findings to be a lot more sporadic. This is a very interesting find that seems almost unusual to me as I am used to the notion of students never really having a structure to their lives and I am pleased to know that the days I am at university and even ones I am not are sensible and have a bit of repetition to them.

In looking back at the 3-day period of my media log and seeing the findings of my media usage over those days I feel it does reflect a typical 3-day media usage of mine. One of the reasons being that the last day recorded was a day I am not at university and it was still rather like that of my days where I was at university. However, I do feel that I did not record my mobile phone games usage as frequently as I anticipated. I would normally consume more mobile phone games when I am in bed or have no university the next day but because the days were so busy, and I had my sister over I was not using the applications as much as I may normally. Although, I do find it interesting to see that I have only consumed mobile phone games around once a day for roughly an hour apart from the multiplayer game ‘Psych’ consumed with my sister. This unexpected lower level of usage could be because the days have been longer than they typically would’ve if I wasn’t expecting company the final day or because I tend to overplay my usage a little because I feel I have more time to waste on my days off.

I decided to choose this 3-day period to gather the data because I already felt I had a good indication as to my media usage levels when I am not at University because I have more days off than I do in, and so I was really intrigued to find out how my days off differ to those that I have on and I feel like those were the best days to gather this information. This chose has provided me with the knowledge that being at university does impact upon my media usage because I am too busy writing notes and listening in lectures to be engaging with any form of media usage. There are occasions where I do find my social media and so on to be a slight distraction in my seminars but not to the same extent as when I am not in a lecture. I often take a shower and read or draw when I am relaxing in the evenings after university and as you can see on the data there are some gaps that would indicate this where I am not consuming media…although it may also be because I am attempting to decide what I can be bothered making for tea and then waiting for that to be ready. I think it is safe to say that if I were to have conducted the research over 3 days I am not at university at all that the results would be rather different to those of the days I am at university as I tend to make more plans and socialise more frequently on the weekends or days I and my other friends are not at university or work.

In conclusion, I would say that I have found the experience rather interesting and challenging due to how demanding the task of conducting research on yourself is, but that I am happy I did it as I have gained some valuable and interesting insight as to my own consumption of media on a daily basis, which is something that not everyone can say they are aware of.

Media Log 1 – The Preparation

My Media Log Assignment for the Media Audiences Module requires me to do a 72hour media log, but before conducting the log I must first determine what I as an individual believe to be considered ‘Media’. The expanse of Media is extremely broad and reaches into many industries that wouldn’t be considered mainstream media at the very least. Media as a term has numerous meanings and for this log to be done correctly I have to identify the various aspects that make up media. Media usage has increased dramatically over the years and it is a part of peoples’ day to day lives, sometimes we don’t even realise we are consuming or using a piece of media because we are so surrounded by it. To decide on what I would define media as I chose to go through my books and review all the information I have about how it can be defined. I decided that there is a piece of media in almost everything we do. Media is everywhere, and we are always surrounded by it in one form or another – mainstream or not.  I personally feel that Media ranges from trivial things such as an alarm clock application to messaging to advertisements both in print and online platforms. In addition to this, I decided to research the official definition of what Media is and the English Oxford Dictionary provided me with the following definition: ‘The main means of mass communication (broadcasting, publishing, and the Internet) regarded collectively.’ The English Oxford Dictionary being one of the most reliable sources of an accurate definition means that I value what it defines media to be highly. The definition they have provided me with suggests that Media is to be considered as any form of communication meaning that trying to narrow down a definition for the log is down to me and me alone as my life is simply full of media.

 

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Now, I have a definition at hand I must face the notion of realism, meaning I must determine how to handle what is and what is not media.

I feel that there is a significant difference between interacting with a media product and it being around me, I do not feel that checking the time on my mobile is an interaction and so I would not class it as being so. I only want to record media interactions that I would deem relevant otherwise I will be spending the entire 72 hours noting down useless information. Thus, I have concluded that although checking the time may not be deemed necessary that if I interact with my mobile beyond the lock I will record the media interaction that I have. Additionally, if I see an advertisement and don’t skip it on my laptop or see a print and I engage with it (stop to read or let it play) then I shall deem that as required to be noted down but only if I engage with the media.

The Media log that I produce will be displayed on 1 table separated into 3, 1 section for each day. The log will consist of data recorded over 3 consecutive days with each relevant media usage I make that I engaged with noted down. Prior to conducting the official 72-hour log I decided to conduct a 24-hour trial log. To do this log I decided to print the table out so that I can simply note down my usage in the moment and not have to wait or give myself the opportunity to forget and then not have accurate data recorded. However, pulling out a piece of paper and remembering to do so proved to be inadequate.

The trail log was a bit challenging for a few reasons. Making sure I am accurately recording information will be difficult as well as making sure I stop to record the usage rather than blindly carrying on with my engagement. I aim to tackle this by making use of quick notes that I         can expand upon when transferring the data onto the computer and I will aim to be more aware of the experiment at hand. The main issue was that by being surrounding almost constantly by media I was trying to note down too many media uses, and this was very difficult to control or obtain. I decided that in the official log I wanted to condense the media usage I record to a more manageable and restricted amount. I also decided that as I always have my phone with me the easiest way to record information would be to simply note it down in the notes app on my phone as it would be an easier way of logging large bits of information. I also noticed that I tend to engage with social media at the same time and so I decided to label any back to back use of Facebook, Instagram or Snapchat as social media within the same time slot and not their individual time use as this proved too complex.

In summery I shall be recording my media usage over a 3-day period using my mobile phone. The data I will be recording will consist of the following:

• What media I am consuming
• The date, time and duration of its consumption
• Where I consumed it
• Why I consumed it
• Any emotional observations I made whilst consuming it

 

 

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By making note of these 5 sub-heading I will be able to focus the information I am recording in my quick notes and allowing myself with the ability to make sure I can cover all ground when expanding on the notes later. Although this will help me I must admit that I tend to consume social media without being aware I am doing so…this is a slightly troubling factor, but I will do my best to record the data. I expect to have recordings of mostly media usage that is via my laptop or mobile phone as I tend to spend most of my time watching shows in the background of doing something. I am huge fan of ‘binge watching’ tv shows. As I am aiming to gather data over days where I am at university for multiple hours I am interested to see what my media usage is like and I feel that it will be slightly lower than what I would do if I had the day off. The level of consumption I use really interests me in terms of the difference that lectures and seminars make to my usage. I also think that I may expect to require some reflection on my tv show watching.

Thursday 18th January 2018 – Media Audiences Seminar 1

Today was the first seminar of the new module Media Audience and was held by a young lecturer named Kathryn. The session was two hours long and had a mixture of both Media and PR (Public Relations) students. We started the session by discussing the definitions in small groups of Media Audiences and a few other starter tasks to ease us into this new module. With each small group task, we were set, we then took it in turns to share the definitions and information we had produced to the other members of the class and picked up on the similarities between the different information we each provided. The session itself was made up of multiple mini-tasks used to try to get us thinking about the difficulty of providing exact definitions within Media Audiences. In attending this session, I have been enlightened as to how everyone’s views vary even when they have been given the same information and how differently the PR students respond and approach tasks in comparison to those who study Media.