Back in the days, before the late 2000s, most people relied on their television when it came to broadcast programming, and the web served to provide people with digital content. That simplicity is long gone due to the rapid advancement in technology which has brought with it sophisticated devices together with content workflow which allows for cross-consumption of both digital and traditional content in almost all available device endpoints. This convergence of traditional and digital methods of content viewing have resulted into individual viewers watching their favorite shows on tablets, phones and televisions anywhere and at any time. This is in contrast to what used to happen earlier when families would gather to watch the latest episode of a show. The convergence in media consumption has led to many issues particularly in the delivery of high-quality content. There are both positives and negatives that have come about as a result of media convergence. However, the negatives outweigh the positives.
One of the negatives that come about with media convergence is that it has led to inconsistencies in content delivery. Consumers nowadays have a variety of contents and screens to pick from. However, whatever the experience or content it must be of quality, regardless of the channel, studio, streaming solution or application. A survey conducted by Survey Monkey investigating viewer habits found out that more than half the consumers (64%) in the United States were willing to go for traditional TV content (Liebmann). This phenomenon is a consequence of convergence termed as “cord cutting.” It describes the decision of the viewer to go for cost-saving streaming media alternatives such as Hulu, and Netflix as opposed to traditional bundled TV services. Digital content is faced with a lot of issues including poor visual synchronization, pixelated video and buffering. This is opposed to traditional cable which offers quality that is highly reliable.
I believe that media convergence has destroyed the traditional methods of analytics and tracking. Quantitating the user of experience is significant to content providers as it enables them to know whether the viewer is rejecting or embracing the content. Media convergence has made this process to be more complex since the methods that work in the digital domain are not similar to those that worked before in the TV. This gauging is important for data-driven decision making on the choices made for the creation of original content.
I am of the idea that media convergence has led to the inability to come up with high-quality media that is universal. Streaming a particular media content could a breathtaking experience that is very clear on one device but extremely terrible on another though both are using similar delivery techniques. This may be attributed to pixelation or buffering making the experience very distracting to the point that the viewer searches for alternative offerings or turns of the content. A study conducted by the University of Massachusetts on how viewer behavior is impacted by video quality found out that viewers are more likely to abandon a video that did not start up within three seconds (Valenzuela Turner). Also, the study revealed that viewers took less time to view a video that “freezes” while playing.
Media convergence is has led to poor security when it comes to delivery of the high-quality experience. Poor viewing experience makes the consumer resort to pirated sources as a result of a security breach. For cable networks like HBO and USA content forms its life-blood. However, content security still lags far much behind which has led to the loss of millions of dollars in revenue. For example, the last episode of season four of the Game of Thrones series had 2 million illegal downloads within its first 12 hours of airing. If it is assumed that an HBO subscription cost approximately $10 per month (on the lower side), this will equate to 20 million dollars lost in revenue (Liebmann). Content sharing websites such as Piratebay offer a platform for downloading movies, series, music content and other media that the consumer would otherwise pay for. Personally, I think this is the most detrimental consequence that has come about due to media convergence. The situation is made worse by the fact that there is little that can be done to salvage this situation.
Media convergence has led to the division of service methods and content distribution. The concept of cord cutting has led to consumers ditching cable bundles which has extended in a different manner to consumers sticking to their subscription bundles. According to a recent study it was found that out of the190 average number of channels that are at the consumer’s disposal only 18 of them are viewed (Valenzuela Turner). This represents only 10% of what the consumers pay for.
The other negative that comes with media convergence is the addictive behavior that it has brought among consumers. The easy retrieval of media, information, as well as the web, has resulted in an addictive behavior as people are constantly checking their Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and others. This addiction has become a way of life for the majority as they cannot function on a daily basis without the use of some technology (tablet, smartphone and much more). This epidemic has infringed on less face-to-face interaction and has caused people to spend more time with technology. This has led to the loss of intimacy out of true communication as most people prefer video chat, text and email over one-on-one interaction.
As much as there are strong views against convergence of news and media, there is an undoubted positive influence that the phenomenon has had in our lives today. In this respect, media and news convergence is not all bad. The concept of media convergence poses different opportunities for the media producers and media consumers. A great rift lies between the media consumers of the 1990’s and present consumers. Unlike in the olden days where each device was a single-tasked gadget, today’s devices are able to perform multiple tasks bringing more conveniences into my hands as the user. In the 20th century, devices like the radio, televisions and computers were held down to one or few tasks, the 21st-century gadgets however like smartphones enable the user to make phone calls, surf the web, watch TV shows, listen to music and much more. This means that through convergence users are able to derive the convenience of information anywhere anytime as long as we can access the internet.
Convergence has brought an “all under one roof” perspective; traditionally one would have to watch a show on the television. Communication was only through one device- the mobile phone and music were only listened via the radio. This was somewhat hectic considering that today all these functionalities can be delivered by a single device. Beside the single device convenience, many devices have been equipped with secondary features to enable them to do more than just their primary tasks. For instance, the PlayStation and Xbox can be used as gaming devices as well as communication devices and an entertainment hub to stream movies, live news or TV shows.
However, it has to be said that more investigation has to be done on the direct impact of these numerous devices in translating to media use, newsroom practices, and content diversity. For instance, over the few years, the market has been flooding with convergence products such as personal computers, laptops, smartphones, tablets, enhanced gaming devices just to mention a few. Research has shown mixed results in the use of these devices to replace traditional devices. A good statistical example denotes that while 22 percent of Americans listens to music over the internet, over 80 percent of the participants under study maintains that they own traditional radios and would continue using them into the future. On a related study, (Klinenberg) discovered that most people who stream live news were more likely to consider newspapers or radio as a substitution and not television.
Convergence has also had a foothold at the educational level with a growing number of journalism students adapting to the contemporary trend in the field. Many schools nowadays believe it is essential for a student to be able to present news across various platforms including television, newspapers and online. After conducting a survey of school administrators (Jenkins) maintains that many school administrators are of the belief that convergence is the future of mass communication. This has led to cross -media curricula and cross- media advancements in communication classes in order to impart student with specialized knowledge on the same. This follows that in pursuing a convergence curriculum, students place their trust on public perception of getting employment in the industry.
For manufacturers and content providers they have had the full benefit of supplying devices and content via many fronts. Manufactures particularly have had the opportunity to release consumption gadgets at every opportunity thereby receiving new avenues of revenue through the sale of smartphones, set-top boxes, tablets and much more. Content providers, on the other hand, have enjoyed the luxury of supplying movies, TV shows, and sports via many media devices available in the market. The most notable gainers in the market of content providers have been Netflix and amazon who are deviating from traditional bundled cable TV services to online streaming services.
In light of all the above, convergence is certainly a force to consider in the demand market, and surely whoever chooses to lay a deaf ear will be left to regret. At the same time, total dependence on convergence has its fair share of woes and personally, I feel that overall the convergence effect has been negative. The total confusion of knowledge everywhere has blurred the need for having other devices, which are undeniably very important. For instance manufacturers and content provider have added many functionalities to the smartphone including movies streaming, justifiably so but the experience in watching a movie or a TV show is best felt in front of a Television Set. The same way making calls from a laptop seems unfeasible. The fact is that manufacturers adding additional secondary functionalities to other devices are mostly due to the monetary gains and not for total convenience. My general attitude over the issue is that in order for convergence to kick start in full throttle questions need to be asked of the most-needed features before they are added for the sake of multi-functionality.
Work Cited
Jenkins, Henry. “The Cultural Logic of Media Convergence.” International Journal of Cultural Studies 7.1 (2004): 33–43. Web.
Klinenberg, Eric. “Convergence: News Production in a Digital Age.” The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 597.1 (2005): 48–64. Web.
Liebmann, Matthew. “Media Convergence.” In J. Treadwell Chair Libraries and Collaboration Session of the Library of the 21st Century Symposium 2006: n. pag. Print.
Valenzuela Turner, Andrés. Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. N.p., 2011. Web.
