BY: Muhammad Ahmad Sh.

SYNERGY AND CONVERGENCE

Media Convergence•Media convergence, in reality, is more than just a shift in technology. It alters relationships between industries, technologies, audiences, genres and markets. Media convergence changes the rationality media industries operate in, and the way that media consumers process news and entertainment. Media convergence is essentially a process and not an outcome, so no single black box controls the flow of media. With proliferation of different media channels and increasing portability of new telecommunications and computing technologies, we have entered into an era where media constantly surrounds us.

•Media convergence requires that media companies rethink existing assumptions about media from the consumer's point of view, as these affect marketing and programming decisions. Media producers must respond to newly empowered consumers.

Cross Media Convergence• Hardware and software coming together across media, and companies coming together across similar boundaries. This makes the distinction between different types of media and different industries increasingly dubious.

• Media institutions are now delivering their products on more than one media channel. For example in my selected movie, World War Z, not only was it launched on the big screen (theater), but also in the home theatre. Online purchases were made available, the movie was watchable through DVD, Blu-Rays etc.

Technology Convergence•“The trend for different technologies for the deliverance of content to start to resemble one another.”

For example, television sets will increasingly resemble computer and computers will increasingly resemble televisions. Both will be used to download movies, pictures etc. Hence, distinction between separate technologies are likely to be erased.

Advantages.A major institute like Skydance productions will have a lot of money so they can use the new technologies to their advantage, there for:

• They advertised more e.g. Billboards, background scene of webs etc.

• They promoted their films by making games based on their movie.

• It was sold in a number of different levels such as DVD, Blue Ray, 3D etc.

• By selling their films on Blue Ray, it shows that the film can be bought in high quality so people would buy them more.

Their aim to gain more profit using Technology Convergence to their advantage.

Disadvantages.However, new the technology convergence could be beneficial for institutions but there are some drawbacks:

• It is found to be more expensive.

• There is a chance of losing profit if movie is a flop.

• No guarantees to if the customer will buy more just for better quality.

• There are cheaper alternatives for people to make their own media work.

Media Synergy•Media Synergy is the way in which different elements of a media conglomerate work together to promote linked products across different media.

For example in my selected film, World War Z, there was a media synergy of film/ soundtrack/ phone/ game this means the film promoted the sound track, promoted the phone promoted the game.

THE END.