Convergence is a topic I have discussed in many subjects, focusing on many different aspects. Jenkins (2006) and Deuze (2007) are both highly regarded academics on the subject, and these two readings have provided even further insight into convergence for me. First of all however, I would like to discuss my own thoughts on the matter.
In today’s digital society, I definitely consider myself to be a prosumer/produser. I own an iPhone, and tried to narrow down the importance of its functions for me for the purpose of this blog. The list was not short. I think this is mostly due to the fact that since I have owned the iPhone, many other products have become obsolete to me. Pre-iPhone I owned a mobile (Samsung flip phone, worked fine), an iPod (again, functioned well) and a camera (not so reliable). Now, I am totally reliant on my iPhone for music listening and photo taking purposes. Prior to owning it, I was completely sceptical and somewhat condescending toward ‘those people’ who always raved on about them, but I often find myself wondering what I used to do before it. For example, during a trip to the supermarket this week I: had the list of items I needed in the ‘notes’ application, looked up a recipe, called a friend to check what I needed and transferred myself some money. All while actually in Woolies. Although the SmartPhone is only one example of convergence, it is clear the impact this has had on my life (and organisation skills).
Web 2.0 is probably the largest example of convergence, with a plethora of different uses available. You know the drill; tv and radio, movies and music, blogs and news, encyclopaedias, tutorials, textbooks, rah rah rah…. Social media platforms echo this, with Facebook used to share photos, videos, links and news, chat to friends, and organise events. During exams my friend asked me to temporarily change her Facebook password so she would not be distracted (a sad but effective practice). Although she did not feel she was very disadvantaged or disconnected for the period of time without it, it was clear that the events application in particular was pushing her out of the social loop. Constantly people would be talking about events happening that she had not yet been invited to, because invites were issued solely through Facebook.
Although these are just somewhat superficial examples of convergence, it is clear that convergent medias are considered to be the norm in this day and age, often pushing products with one sole into obsolescence. Adverse to this, Jenkins (2006) states ‘old media are not being displaced. Rather, their functions and status are shifted by the introduction of new technologies’. I would be very interested to hear which of these ideas you agree with?
I feel that media both evolve & shift status but also die out in a way too. It reminds me of the week in lecture about the vinyl record for example morphing into the cd, both a means to obtain music, but by the same token, we now have i-tunes/i-pods in combo with bit torrents etc. i-tunes and bit torrents both represent a shift from the 'physical' but bit torrents additionally represent a shift from the traditional music industry model. Then on top of all of this there's the repurposing of the vinyl via the 'backscratching' dj. So in this instance, the vinyl effectively reappears and starts to redefine what we perceive as 'music' ie. the addition of scratching.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that we still use both traditional physical means of music and intangible forms via downloading while simultaneously engaging in traditional/legal forms of music purchase plus more inventive forms of free downloading. Perhaps the latter is going to take precedence in the future and it is the traditional music industry model that is becoming obsolescent.
I think convergence is occurring though at both the level of the technology and also at the level of distribution, but maybe not at the level of the actual content ie. music has always been music regardless of the form in which we receive it and regardless of whether we receive it in a singular/one sole form or combined with additional content.
In response to you comment about how when you bought an iPhone all other technologies became obsolete, I completely agree. When I finally got a smart phone I forgot about those old toys of mine, camera, ipod and sadly even a game boy. My phone camera is actually better quality then my actual camera so there is no reason why i'd bother with all the other stuff. I wish I was more traditional and used different types of technology but really I only rely on the one.
ReplyDelete@Appollo 8, although I can see where you're coming from in terms of obsolescence of old technologies, it is also interesting to note in the product life cycle, often old products come back into fashion as 'vintage'. I know many people who have gone out and bought a record player or old camera in order to retain some of the quality of the original. Just an interesting thought.
ReplyDeleteI will never ever forget about my camera (as I rant about it in my own blog on this topic).
ReplyDeleteI, too, recently got an iPhone, and I absolutely hate taking photos with it, the camera is so crappy!
However, my old iPod/mp3 players, phone, paper, shopping lists and everything have become obsolete as I now rely on my iPhone to do the everyday menial tasks.
But as I have said in my own blog, I really don't think everything will ever converge into the one. We still need specialist products that do one job.