The Socialization of the iPhone and App Store

In a society that requires “On-Demand” technology, it is crucial to have access to content immediately. On-Demand technology is anything created to have ease of access while also having and providing content as close as possible to the event or topic it is covering or fulfilling. The App store along with the the development of the iPhone a mobile Smartphone created a whole new On-Demand economy. The App store allowed for the development of mobile banking apps, social media apps, gaming apps, music streaming apps, as well as apps for viewing real-time stocks. This development has had huge implications for the business world, forcing banks and business to develop apps in-order to compete with the rest of their market. This includes banks like Chase all the way down to smaller competitors like Texas Bank & Trust. This on demand system has created a system in which consumers expect companies to provide a means of access to some sort of Application. This has also created an independent economy where in 2016 app developments made a astounding $50 Billion. The App store also conveniently places these applications in 24 different categories based on what the app developers believe the niche their app fulfills. These categories include but are limited to gaming, entertainment, and news. In conclusion, the socialization and popularity of the iPhone along with its partnership with the App Store has created a entirely new industry, that is entirely rooted in On-Demand technology.

Android's War Against Society's Preference: What social/economic forces shape communication infrastructure?

What social/economic forces shape communication infrastructure?

In my case study, I wanted to look at the now well-known divide between Android products and the ever-so popular Apple platform. In my research I was able to look at how the opinions are driven on which product has the best camera, or the newest feature update and so on. It was interesting to look back and see the progress of cell phones since they have been available to the public, and even the major changes that have taken place in my lifetime. The ongoing battle of who is in charge of the industry has a lot to do with the community that has supported the two for years. Apple has what feels like a massive lead here in the United States because it was a trend that stuck with people over time, but overall Android OS (Operating Systems) are massively popular since there is much more accessibility through that OS compared to Apple's iOS. To me there is no way that I can say one type of phone is superior over the other since I have never had an Android, but from the resources I found and feedback that I got, there are plenty of Android users that have stuck to what they find comfortable and what they want to stay loyal to. The fact that this industry is even relevant is a huge factor in the question of the week. Everyone can have an opinion on this topic. Even if they don't have the proper means to call one out over the other, they can still give their opinion on the device they have.

Is Youtube the Television of the future: How do older forms of media inform new media markets?

In my case study I looked into the development of Youtube, and how it is expanding into its own form of cable TV. I dove into the history of Youtube which identified key points in its advancement to a huge entertainment provider, its first major inovation being Youtube Red. This development turned Youtube from a home video site, to a content creator making exclusive shows and movies for the platform. Youtube has made major movies and and invested lots of money into their Youtube originals, developing them into something extremely similar to regular TV shows.

Here is a link to 'The Thinning' a Youtube original movie


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FbQoI8P7c4


Youtube TV is the newest inovation, it was announced in February 2017. This innovation has not officially come out yet, however Youtube have announced channels which will be available on their initial launch. These involved lots of sport shows and major networks such as CBS, the cost of Youtube TV is cheaper than regular cable providers such as Dish. It does have less channels, however the channels listed so far are only for initial launch as I said above which leaves room for expansion.


Youtube's expansion I see as a development of making the world more 'cordless' as we see everywhere now, and I think it will be a big success.


Work Cited

Callero, Peter L. “An Investigation Into Alternative Television Viewership Habits Of College Students.” Mar. 2017.

Solomon, Feliz. “YouTube Could Be About to Overtake TV as America's Most Watched Platform”. February, 28th, 2017. http://fortune.com/2017/02/28/youtube-1-billion-hours-television/

Pino, Nick. “YouTube TV: Everything you need to know about the TV streaming service”.     August, 17th, 2017. http://www.techradar.com/news/youtube-tv-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-new-tv-streaming-service

Wasserman, Todd. “The revolution wasn't televised: The early days of YouTube”. February, 14th, 2015. http://mashable.com/2015/02/14/youtube-history/#OjdoTk6hzPqA

Green, Joshua , and Jean Burgess. YouTube: Online Video and Participatory Culture. Polity Press, 2009.

Strangelove, Michael . Watching YouTube: Extraordinary Videos by Ordinary People. UTP Publishing , 2010.

Reality TV: How older media forms influence newer media markets?

Technology is constantly evolving and changing. We live in a society where we are constantly striving for the bigger, newer, and better things. This has become apart of our culture. This culture of topping the newest things has affected our technology and media industries. It has resulted in an exponential growth in technology in the last 20 years. The editors of Big Think Articles stated, "We won’t experience 100 years of progress in the 21st century — it will be more like 20,000 years of progress (at today’s rate)," wrote Kurzweil in 2001. Just think about how much things have changed in the past 10 years—wireless internet, smart phones, Facebook and Twitter—and then try to imagine how vastly different things will be in 2021, or even 2100”.  Older forms of media influence new media markets. The older forms act as building blocks for the new media markets to build off of. For example, Radio led to the television industry and if it were not for the radio acting as a building block the Television and television networks would probably not exist. My specific case of how older forms of media inform newer media markets is reality TV. This genre of television all came about by radio. Alan Funt, a popular radio host of Candid mic, made his popular radio show into the first reality TV show, Candid Camera. This opened up the world to reality Television which has influenced other media markets such as social media, gaming and news. My specific example is the Kardashians, the stars of the reality TV show Keeping Up With The Kardashians. Ever since their reality TV show hit the big screen in 2007, they have experienced a huge fan base. This is called a parasocial relationship, or a one-sided relationship. Where as their fans feel like they know them personally because they see them in their everyday lives through their reality TV show. This has given the reality TV stars such as the Kardashians a platform that has changed out media markets. For instance, Kim Kardashian has 57 million followers on Twitter. Her presence on social media sites such as Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat have brought an audience to those sites as well causing social media to positively grow with TV. This is the same thing with the gaming and app industry. They have made games, such as Kim Kardashian’s: Hollywood Experience, and have even made endorsements for specific games. When these reality stars are making endorsements for these games or social media sites, because of the parasocial relationship, it makes their fan base feel like it is more of a friend recommendation then an endorsement. This brings more of an audience to these gaming and app media industries just because someone they like “uses” them too. Another media  industry Reality TV influences is the News outlets such as FOX, CNN, Late Night Shows, etc. For example, Kylie Kardashian pregnancy announcement made national news over the North Korean Nuclear war offset. The new media industry mindset of “give the consumer what they want” it has changes the News industry and the stories that they cover. Media industries are all linked together and act as building blocks to one another. 

Sources:

Andrejevic, Mark. “Reality TV.” The international Encyclopedia   of Communication – Andrejevic – Wiley  Online Library,   John Wiley & Songs, Ltd, 5 June 2008,   Onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9781405186407/  full.

Biressi, A., & Nunn, H. (2004). Reality TV: Realism and   revelation. London: Wallflower Press.

Kristin M. Barton, Reality Television Programming and   Diverging Gratification: the influence of Content on   Gratifications Obtained, 53 J. Broad. & Elec. Media