Plugging UK AD

What are you talking about?

"Media convergence is not just a technological shift or a technological process, it also includes shifts within the industrial, cultural, and social paradigms that encourage the consumer to seek out new information. Convergence, simply put, is how individual consumers interact with others on a social level and use various media platforms to create new experiences, new forms of media and content that connect us socially, and not just to other consumers, but to the corporate producers of media in ways that have not been as readily accessible in the past.

For example, the Wii is not only a games console, but also an web browser and social networking tool. Mobile phones are another good example, in that they increasingly incorporatedigital cameras, mp3 players, camcorders, voice recorders, and other devices." (Wikipedia)

When thinking about convergence and how it would affect traditional media, I instantly think about third world countries. The reason why I do this is because convergence is not exactly everywhere and it is almost an elite treat in this kind of countries. Therefore, traditional media will stay the way it is now for a very long time in these areas and any type of transformation will remain in a niche sector/market (at least for the next decade, in my opinion). Therefore, traditional media as we know it now will continue in order to fulfill everybody else’s demand.

Nevertheless, I think that traditional media will definitely be transformed by convergence in the future. The way that we are going to consume media will radically change but still traditional media as newspapers, magazines and books will continue to exist. Maybe this media would get a transformation but its traditional form will remain. For example, online newspapers have more readers than traditional newspapers nowadays but it is important to point out that while travelling or being in a waiting room, traditional newspapers are still in use, more than online ones. I guess this will continue simply because it is a completely different experience to actually touch the physical media and also, because salons, for instance, are not going to afford digital readers or portable PCs for their costumers to read digital newspaper while waiting.

On the other hand, I deeply think that convergence is absolutely positive for creativity and cultures. In other words, convergence can help cultures to get in touch one to another, to connect different ways of thinking and take advantage of the results. What I’m trying to say is that convergence can make the Creative and Cultural Industries more diverse by providing the professionals with the tools to understand other cultures and communicate in the right way with them. Ignorance encourages segregation but knowledge and curiosity (incentivized by convergence) can make the Creative and Cultural Industries more diverse and richer in content. In my opinion, convergence can broaden up their market and even create more opportunities for the business. That is why I strongly believe that convergence will make London an even more multicultural and creative city. Being able to consume cultural products from different countries by media is going to incentivize creativity and interest in other cultures.

Make it clearer!

A striking example is the possibility of a book, which emphasizes and portrays a culture in the most deeply sense, to be sold, read and discussed in different media and thanks to convergence. This book can also become a film or a website where people comment about it. Moreover, the film’s soundtrack can also influence and help multiculturalism by inserting a certain type of music to the rest of the city. In my opinion, someone who reads or bumps into this book or movie can feel attracted by the culture and this could function as a trigger for further investigation and understanding of it and it might also act as an incentive for creativity.

In conclusion, in my opinion, convergence can make any city more multicultural and creative, especially a city like London. But we don't have to forget those countries and cities that aren't as lucky as UK is. Therefore, I think that traditional media in general is going to be transformed by convergence but many media will not disappear due to the fact that several countries lack of resources to make convergence a massive reality.

PS: Photos taken from gettyimages.com