Which two
industries do you think will undergo the most change in the next 10 years? How
will media professionals and users/consumers be impacted by those changes?
*Note: For the final blog posting, you must still use
three readings to support your responses. They can be from any point in the
semester and they must be assigned readings for the class (no additional
outside article/source required). Limit: 10 responses
I think that the two industries that will undergo the most change in the next 10 years are the film and music industries.
ReplyDeleteThe film industry has a few things to contend with, namely, the coronavirus pandemic affecting employees that have no way to work from their homes such as gaffers, cinematographers, and other on-set workers, the movie theaters are in a crisis which the pandemic has made even more apparent, and the future of streaming for the film industry.
There is unfortunately not much that studios can do to help employees that have suddenly found themselves without work, as “most production employees are gig workers that don't receive healthcare from companies they work for and do not typically receive paid sick leave” (Kilkenny). Additionally, “‘below-the-line’ workers — members of the crew — usually work hourly instead of for a lump sum and are paid less than ‘above the line’ roles like directors, stars and producers” (Kilkenny). This is especially terrible because these workers have no health care coverage and have no income, may not be able to pay rent or other essential expenses such as groceries and could be sent into a terrible financial downturn if they get sick. These people are the film industry’s “essential workers” and they are out of work and unable to get help. This pandemic has exposed “the overall lack of financial and social safety nets for crew and support staff in Hollywood” (Kilkenny).
There are a lot of people staying home now because of the pandemic. Movie theaters across the U.S. were shut down early as they are not considered essential businesses. When the theaters reopen, they are going to have to implement measures that will encourage social distancing (as medical professionals have suggested that we may have to wait 12 to 18 months to get a vaccine). Of course, if there are measures to promote social distancing, there will be fewer people that will be allowed to be in a theater to see a movie at the same time, thus limiting how much money a movie theater can make during the showing of one film at a certain time slot. Movie theaters may only have a month or two to gain some revenue from their theaters when quarantine measures are lifted before there is a possibility that the theaters would have to close again for a second wave of the virus or to help combat further spread until there is a vaccine. However, even when the theaters open, people will likely be hesitant to go to the theaters and spend the money when going outside for non-essential purposes has serious health risks now, and movie theaters are unfortunately not an essential business. The movie theaters are struggling but we have seen a surge in drive-in theaters. Maybe a more worthwhile effort for some theaters is to transform their theaters into drive-in theaters. Of course, this is incredibly expensive and a lot of movie theaters owners don’t have the money for such a renovation, but it may be necessary to survive.
So, if people are not going to the theaters, the next solution is streaming. Universal and Disney have both made their newest releases available to be rented for $19.99, While this helps out the industry, some analysts say it is nearly mathematically impossible for the studios to be able to gain the same amount of money they would have gotten if the films were released in theaters. Additionally, some families may not be willing to indulge in renting movies during the economic crisis that has emerged from the pandemic; thus, “the pay-per-view business is likely to get smashed between a recession and streaming” (Masters). The pay-per-view strategy will make the studio lose money on films that are projected to earn massive numbers from the box office, such as the ninth installment in the Fast and Furious series, however, “the pay-per-view strategy makes the most sense for low-budget films or movies that didn’t seem likely to pull in stellar box office numbers had they held out for theaters” (Masters). While lower-budget films may have the potential to earn more through pay-per-view, it remains to be seen if people will be willing to pay $20 to rent a film when they could wait a few months to see it on a streaming service they already subscribe to.
DeleteNot only will the studios already be losing money because of streaming, but there is also a very real threat of piracy which further hurts the business. Disney is probably the studio in the best position to remain strong after the pandemic, especially because of its own streaming service, Disney+, where they have been releasing their feature films that were supposed to be released in theaters. The service has garnered over 50 million subscribers, and I’m sure that will continue to grow as families with young children realize that they need something to keep them entertained while parents work. However, other studios and directors may follow what Martin Scorcese did with Netflix, to showcase his film on the king of streaming’s site. This poses a problem for the theaters in the future as “if they don’t carry the Netflix big-budget movie slate they are effectively pushing consumers to increasingly expect to get first-run big-budget content in their homes or on their personal devices” (Zeitnick).
The music industry has some of the same problems to contend with that the film industry has, such as the effect of the coronavirus on festivals and concerts, the largest part of the music industry’s revenue as “live shows account for some 75% of musicians’ income, compared with around 30% in the 1980s and 1990s” (Steele). Given that people rarely buy CDs and records anymore as it is, the music industry is really struggling to gain income. Most music profits do not come from streaming, so the music industry will have to find another way to gain income without festivals and concerts which have the possibility of VIP experiences.
DeleteI think that people are going to be wary of going to concerts and festivals for a while now because the prospect of being in a densely packed crowd is scary in terms of spreading disease and also, there are signs of an economic recession where people will have less disposable income to spend on concerts and other experiences. The music industry will have to adapt to ensure that people within the industry are paid and to make music a more profitable business. That may involve investment from other artists who are well established and providing crowdfunding for projects on sites such as GoFundMe or other crowdfunding sites that are in development to serve artists in particular. Some artists are already doing this, “newly toying with startups that allow direct artist-to-fan messaging; others are planning fundraisers on Kickstarter, sending subscriber-only newsletters on Patreon, and raising engagement (and modest sums of money) via other means” (Ingham). Media consumers may find that they will have to support their favorite artists by buying their merchandise or by donating money to them in a GoFundMe to help finance their upcoming project.
In both the film and music industries, the business strategies have to vastly change in order for these industries to stay afloat.
Works Cited:
DeleteZeitchik, Steven. “How Netflix could disrupt the world of high-end film with ‘The Irishman.’” The Washington Post, 27 Sept. 2019, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/09/27/netflix-seeks-disrupt-world-high-end-film-with-irishman/
Kikenney, Katie. “Below-the-Line Hollywood Faces Sudden Unemployment Amid Coronavirus: ‘It's a Disaster.’" The Hollywood Reporter, 17 March 2020, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/below-line-hollywood-faces-sudden-unemployment-coronavirus-a-disaster-1285110
Masters, Kim. “Virus Crisis Forces Hollywood to Reckon With Collapsing Theatrical Windows.” The Hollywood Reporter, 19 March 2020. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/virus-crisis-forces-hollywood-reckon-collapsing-theatrical-windows-1285366?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=THR%27s%20Today%20in%20Entertainment_2020-03-20%2007:15:00_aweprin&utm_term=hollywoodreporter_tie
Ingham, Tim, Ethan Millman, and Amy X. Wang. “Where the Music Business Is Going in 2020.” Rolling Stone, 13 Jan. 2020, https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/music-business-stories-to-watch-2020-928849/
Steele, Amy. “Why Concert Tickets are so Expensive.” Wall Street Journal, 26 Dec. 2019, https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-concert-tickets-are-so-expensive-11577371024?mod=lead_feature_below_a_pos1&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=THR%27s%20Today%20in%20Entertainment_now_2019-12-27%2007:35:24_ehayden&utm_term=hollywoodreporter_tie
Adelle Tedesco
ReplyDeleteThe two industries that I think will see the biggest changes within the next 10 years are film and television. Before the Coronavirus began to affect the television and film industries they were already seeing a change as more people already started turning to streaming services. With streaming services like Netflix, Hulu and Disney plus; many users are turning to these to watch movies and television rather than cable and movie theaters.
In this time of the Coronavirus the film industry has turned to streaming services and other online services to release new movies and keep the public entertained. (Rubin) While this is what needs to be done now, once this virus passes this may still be the case for the film industry and in the future the film industry may find that streaming services and being mainly online is what works for them and what will keep the industry alive. While the film industry is likely to lose money and to do poorly, streaming services is what is keeping this industry afloat and in the future the film industry may have to adapt more to streaming services as it becomes a more likely future for the film industry. (McClintock) In the future the film industry may be able to go back to its old forms of movie theaters, and premieres; but with the world changing to go more online the new modern film industry may also have to. (Rubin)
Similar to the film industry, Television has also been quickly changing and adapting to be all online and all on streaming services. This change for television was already beginning to form long before the coronavirus, but similar to the film industry after being changed by this virus, the television industry is likely to keep these changes. (Porter) Many television networks had already began a transition into creating and having their own streaming services, and with the numbers of subscribers has reached a high peak. (Hayden) The television industry has been changing to online line and streaming services for a while, and in the future of the industry it is likely to adapt more online to more streaming services. There will always bee some form of television programming that will always stay on live television, but more and more shows have turned to online streaming like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime; having this become the new norm for television right now and in future of the industry. (Hayden)
The future of the media industry is turning all online, while these changes have been happening for a long time at this point within the future of these industries having everything be online and in streaming will become the new normal. Within the next 10 years, the film and the television industries will follow with other media trends, and consuming television and movies online and with streaming services may end up being the only way.
Sources:
ReplyDeleteHayden, Erik. “HBO Max Tops Peacock in Viewer Interest Ahead of Streaming Launches.” The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Mar. 2020, www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/hbo-max-tops-peacock-viewer-interest-streaming-launches-1287499?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=THR%27s%2BToday%2Bin%2BEntertainment_2020-03-31%2B07%3A15%3A00_aweprin&utm_term=hollywoodreporter_tie.
McClintock, Pamela. “Box Office's Best Case Scenario? Down 40 Percent.” The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Apr. 2020, www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/box-offices-best-case-scenario-down-40-percent-1289032?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=THR%27s%2BToday%2Bin%2BEntertainment_2020-04-08%2B07%3A40%3A00_aweprin&utm_term=hollywoodreporter_tie.
Porter, Rick. “How Big Is the Stay-At-Home TV Spike? Significant, for Now.” The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Mar. 2020, www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/how-big-is-stay-at-home-tv-spike-1286624.
Rubin, Rebecca. “'Trolls World Tour' Straight to Streaming - Sign of the Times or the New Normal?” Variety, Variety, 9 Apr. 2020, variety.com/2020/film/news/trolls-world-tour-streaming-theatrical-window-future-1234573263/.
John McMahon
ReplyDeleteLooking at media across many different platforms, the two industries poised for the most change are streaming services and cable. Although there has been a significant change on both fronts due to the COVID-19 virus, they won’t necessarily be permanent, but more lasting changes are on the horizon.
Streaming services have seen an uptick in new users and usage, due to many confined to their homes in stay at home orders. However, these increases don’t seem to be the “new normal”, but rather a temporary alternative to how people consume media normally. The release of Trolls 2 on demand, for example, is not as much of a breakthrough for a direct to streaming model than it is a response to the current pandemic situation. Regarding Trolls 2 experts “suggest the decision is more likely a unique response to the rare circumstances” and “it’s the chance to offer a film, one that might not have been a theatrical juggernaut, to a captive audience stuck indoors” (Rubin, 1). Since Trolls would not have the same theatrical success as something like the Fast and Furious franchise, it makes more sense for studio executives to release it on demand. Even after the pandemic is over, I don’t see a permanent shift in releasing big box office movies on demand, simply due to the fact that they have the potential to make monumentally more money in theatres, especially in the global box office. According to an article in Variety, shifting the release date of major blockbuster movies (like Fast and Furious and No Time to Die) will “cost millions in global marketing and promotional dollars”, and “production entities will rack up bills on unexpected dark weeks for projects that were in the full swing of lensing”, not to mention the millions of dollars they would also lose from a theatrical release (Littleton & Low, 1). Movies like these are much better off in theatres, regardless of a pandemic or not.
Knowing this, I still think there will still be some significant change in regard to streaming and cable “cord cutting”. In an article by Forbes, author Toni Fitzgerald projects that “By 2023, the number of households without pay TV will hit 56.1 million, while those with will fall to 72.7 million”, and “by 2021, more than a fifth of U.S. households will have cut the cord” (Fitzgerald, 1). This seems pretty accurate to me. With the emergence of popular original shows airing on streaming services like Stranger Things, The Mandalorian, and Ozark, consumers are almost forced to abandon traditional cable because much of what they want to watch isn’t offered there. Other than news and sports (which Hulu is and other platforms are slowly adopting), cable doesn't have much to offer consumers anymore, with most tv shows winning awards being offered by premium channels or streaming services. Lastly, with the amount of money that streaming services have like Netflix and Disney (with Bob Iger having put an estimated 2.6 billion towards the resources for a streaming service), cable networks will be out manned and underfunded compared to streaming giants (Jarvey, 1).
Works Cited
Fitzgerald, Toni. “Cord Cutting Is About To Go Way, Way Up.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 6 Aug. 2019, www.forbes.com/sites/tonifitzgerald/2019/08/06/cord-cutting-is-about-to-go-way-way-up/#55003b54337e.
Littleton, Cynthia. “Hollywood Braces for Coronavirus Financial Hit That Could Change the Industry Forever.” Variety, Variety, 19 Mar. 2020, variety.com/2020/biz/features/hollywood-coronavirus-financial-festivals-film-television-production-1203537442/.
Jarvey, Natalie. “Disney Over the Top: Bob Iger Bets the Company (and Hollywood's Future) on Streaming.” The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Oct. 2019, www.hollywoodreporter.com/features/bob-iger-bets-company-hollywood-s-future-streaming-1247663.
Rubin, Rebecca. “'Trolls World Tour' Straight to Streaming - Sign of the Times or the New Normal?” Variety, Variety, 9 Apr. 2020, variety.com/2020/film/news/trolls-world-tour-streaming-theatrical-window-future-1234573263/.
As media is constantly changing everyday, industries will be strongly impacted. Two industries that I think will undergo the most change in the next 10 years is film and television. The article states, “The studios have looked at the situation and realized they cannot fit everything into the end of this year. They’ve had to accept that this year is going to take a big hit” (McClintock). This shows how theatres are going to have an extremely rough time going back in business. The pandemic is going to hurt the working and production setting with no income coming in. This is going to be a struggle to get back their audience. Even though there are still many people that are eager to see movies out, the safety of movies theatres is also now a factor. Many of the employees in the theatres and on the sets have no jobs which will effect the whole industry.
ReplyDeleteTelevision is very similar to film. The TV industry has been trying to compete with streaming services with a while now. The article states, “The new streamers coming into the market are obviously bringing a lot of money and changing the business dynamics, but from a pure selling perspective, and getting new content out…it’s really unbelievably exciting,” (Vourlias). This quote is a significant example of how the TV industry is changing into streaming ways. The industry has undergone seismic shifts and it is continuing to grow. Many big cable companies are switching to online streaming. “As other conglomerates prioritize creating film and TV projects for in-house services, Viacom has also tried to position itself as a seller to streaming platforms as it develops its own over-the-top strategy. In November, Viacom inked a multiyear output deal with Netflix for a series of Nickelodeon-branded original film and TV projects and licensed Paramount Studios' upcoming Beverly Hills Cop 4 to the streamer” (Hayden). This is also a strong example of how big media names are making the transition online. Many of the consumers will receive more content at their own pleasure as they can watch shows when they want to. This being said, box office sales for movie theatres are down significantly in 2020 due to the pandemic. An article published by the Hollywood Reporter reads “If this scenario holds, North American box office revenue will struggle to hit $7 billion for the year, the lowest figure in more than two decades and nearly 40% behind 2019 ($11.4 billion)” (McClintock). No matter what is done to revolutionize and adapt to the changing times, this pandemic is causing many major businesses to take enormous losses. The TV industry may change forever because of everything that has happened, and this means a whole of green for media streaming services. It is in fact unbelievably exciting like Vourlias wrote in his article, but for some companies that have been a long standing staple in the TV this is the worst case scenario. We will see some giants fall, and new giants will arise in the process. Both of these entertainment services are going to be impacted in the sense of no filming and minimal production going on for the next couple of months while the virus is still at its peak.
Works Cited
Hayden, Erik. “ViacomCBS Plans New Streaming Service.” The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Feb. 2020, www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/viacomcbs-plans-new-streaming-service-1277113.
McClintock, Pamela. “Box Office's Best Case Scenario? Down 40 Percent.” The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Apr. 2020, www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/box-offices-best-case-scenario-down-40-percent-1289032?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=THR's Today in Entertainment_2020-04-08 07:40:00_aweprin&utm_term=hollywoodreporter_tie.
Vourlias, Christopher. “Lionsgate TV Chairman Kevin Beggs on Streamers and TV's 'Platinum Era'.” Variety, Variety, 19 Oct. 2019, variety.com/2019/tv/news/lionsgate-tv-kevin-beggs-mia-1203376382/.
After the COVID-19 pandemic, many industries have experienced a shift that will change the way they function in society. In the next 10 years, I think that it is likely that the two industries that will undergo the most changes are the film industry and the television industry.
ReplyDeleteWith people being told to practice social distancing, movie theaters have continued to suffer economically from being shut down so long. There has always been a steady decline in U.S. movie admissions and this was especially noticeable in 2019 to which it “slid 4.6% last year to 1.24 billion, the second lowest admissions number during the current century” according to the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) (McNary 2020).
With that being said, studios have been trying to make their money back by offering films on a pay-per-view basis. DreamWorks Animation was said to be offered on-demand for $20, but one exec spoke to Hollywood Reporter claiming that “No parent is looking to pay $20 so a child can watch a movie one or two times in the house”(Masters 2020).
Although the film industry has yet to establish a profitable and realistic way to offer films in the comfort of the home, I think that it is very likely that we will start seeing more films being available for people to buy and stream at home in the next decade. Netflix tried this out last year by streaming ‘The Irishmen” and they found that they reached a lot more people. As a result, I wouldn’t be surprised if in the next 10 years, a transition to streaming movies from home becomes popularized. This would absolutely hurt box office sales and the pockets of directors and studios, but continue to give people what they want.
When it comes to the television industry, they face their own set of struggles. Their major competitors are streaming platforms such as Netflix, Hulu, Disney +, HBO and the many others that are in the process of being developed. Although, broadcast television may be thriving a little more than usual because of the quarantine and people staying home, broadcast television still faces the threat of more cord-cutting and a major shift to streaming platforms. Less people are willing to watch a new show as soon as it airs and that’s where the interest and popularity of streaming platforms comes in.
Aside from the major switch to streaming, cable will likely see some success with lifestyle and niche networks such as TLC that actually saw an “11% increase in viewers” in 2019 (Schneider 2019). Although lifestyle and niche networks like TLC and HGTV have proven their popularity, it is very possible that they may become networks completely separate from cable and likely create their own streaming platform. Even though consumers will be willing to pay for multiple streaming services in the future and it’ll likely be in the form of bundling, researchers like Sappington are confident that “ consumers are willing to pay more for a service that fits specific needs”(Weprin 2019). At the end of the day, generation Z and millennials are the consumers companies need to cater to in the next decade and they enjoy having the freedom to watch whatever they want, whenever they want.
Works Cited
DeleteMasters, Kim. “Virus Crisis Forces Hollywood to Reckon With Collapsing Theatrical Windows.” The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Mar. 2020, www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/virus-crisis-forces-hollywood-reckon-collapsing-theatrical-windows-1285366?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=THR%27s%2BToday%2Bin%2BEntertainment_2020-03-20%2B07%3A15%3A00_aweprin&utm_term=hollywoodreporter_tie.
McNary, Dave. “U.S. Movie Admissions Plunge 4.6% in 2019 Amid Box Office Decline.” Variety, Variety, 18 Jan. 2020, variety.com/2020/film/news/box-office-u-s-movie-admissions-decline-1203471592/.
Schneider, Michael. “Most-Watched Television Networks: Ranking 2019's Winners and Losers.” Variety, Variety, 26 Dec. 2019, variety.com/2019/tv/news/network-ratings-top-channels-fox-news-espn-cnn-cbs-nbc-abc-1203440870/.
Weprin, Alex. “Where Do Niche Streamers Fit in a Sea of Services?” The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Nov. 2019, www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/do-niche-streamers-fit-a-sea-services-1253172?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=THR%27s%2BToday%2Bin%2BEntertainment_2019-11-08%2B07%3A05%3A00_aweprin&utm_term=hollywoodreporter_tie.
Brett DiSalvo
ReplyDeleteOur everyday lives from consumers to professionals are being changed by media trends. Media industries are changing constantly but there are a few that more important to the rest. The rise of streaming services, social influencers, and media consolidation are three major trends that are affecting both professionals and consumers. Although all of them are important, to me, the rise of social influencers has been the most interesting, and impactful trend that is affecting the world of media today. Social Influencers are now a huge portion of the way people advertise, promote, and earn money off of social media. It is a very unique process and is gaining more and more popularity as social media continues to explode.
This new wave of advertising is being called influencer marketing. According to CBS MoneyWatch, “thousands of companies have been using this relatively new concept. It's simply a modern form of advertising called "influencer marketing," which allows for so-called influencers -- users who have a large following on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and Snapchat -- to partner with brands that are in sync with their lifestyles,” (Meltzer). This style of advertising is allowing companies to reach the exact target demographic that they want. This makes it more exciting for companies to pair with these influencers because the company is aware of who the influencers following is, how many people they can reach, and how often they can reach them across many different platforms. It also sparks a conversation on social media about the product creating even more of a buzz around it. This new form of advertising and marketing is taking over the way companies operate today and how they reach their target market. Besides just being an interesting way of advertising, this has become a market that you can make a lot of money while also being a full time job.
Influencers can earn money a lot of different ways doing this and the pay they receive from partnerships vary on what they are doing for them. An article by Mic Editors outlined the different ways influencers can earn an income, “Perhaps the most visible way that influencers make money is through sponsored posts; but while that may be the most common revenue source, it’s not the only one…influencers also make money through affiliate partnerships (in which they’ll link to products in their posts and earn a commission when followers click through and make a purchase), traditional banner advertising on blogs and potentially even in person appearances. “Larger, high-tier influencers do have opportunities for speaking engagements and instore appearances,” she said.,” (Mic Editors). This shows the versatility and diversity in the business. Influencers can earn money so many different ways and it has become a lucrative business for both companies and influencers themselves. According to Hub Spot, “marketers have seen such success from influencer marketing that almost 40% of them plan to increase their influencer budget in 2018 and beyond,” (Forsey). Social influencing has exploded the last few years and I see no reason to why it won’t continue to grow over the next few years. For professional companies, they are benefitting from targeting their exact target market. This has also creating a professional job for these influencers. For consumers, it gives them a chance to see products and partnerships that align with their lifestyle. They most likely follow these influencers because it aligns with their likes and interest, seeing what they sponsor or promote will likely be interesting to the consumer as well.
Overall, I think this trend will continue and we are just seeing the beginning of this market. This is the most important trend in media today because of how much it changes the way businesses reach their audience and market themselves. It is changing the way consumers and professionals operate and that’s why it’s the biggest trend today.
DeleteWorks Cited
Forsey, Caroline. “Influencers in Every Industry (135 and Counting!),” HubSpot, 13 August 2019, https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/instagram-influencers
Meltzer, Lauren. “Social Media ‘Influencers’ Add a New Twist to Advertising,” CBS MoneyWatch, 8February 2018, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/social-media-influencers-brand-advertising/
Mic Editors. “How Much Do Influencers Actually Make?,” Mic Editors, 13 February 2019,
https://www.mic.com/articles/192799/how-much-money-do-influencers-actually-make