The table above represents a perspective of how media has
changed over the years. It shows an “evolution” of media as it transitioned
from Traditional media to New media. Following New media it shows how media was
revolutionized as it entered a Digital status.
Prior to the 1990s, media was seen as “Traditional”. It was
before the Internet took place and technology started to digitalize media, as
we knew it.
Traditional media was generally delivered to the public
through a broadcast. Newspapers, Radio and TV channels managed to reach the
masses. This form of media also did not have a specific target audience. The
main channels were TV, Radio and Print media.
The first companies to be seen as traditional media include
Time Warner, Disney and CBC. If you look at the mentioned companies today, you
can imagine the drastic changes or “evolution” that each one went through in
regards to new media.
The main business model of Traditional Media was through
subscription and brand advertising. That was the main concern and main way of
getting their image to the public.
The content delivery was seen in a “push” form. By “push”
they just constantly pushed out their media content to their consumers.
Consumers had few choices in regards to what to look at.
There was a lack of variations in topics.
Traditional Media went through a slow and steady pace of
growth.
But eventual there was an evolution, and in the 1990s
traditional media became “New” media.
“New” media first came to be in the 1990s. Their delivery
was more narrowcast. This is due to the open options of being able to specify
their audience more.
As technology changed, so did the main channels that “New”
media used to reach their audience. The main channels used were cable,
satellite radio, and specialty magazines.
Keep in mind, the changes do not mean that previous channels
became obsolete. They are obviously still used today, but in different ways.
Companies that are recognized for using New Media include
HBO, Primedia, and Comcast.
The “New” media business model relied heavily on
subscription. People subscribed to receive their services.
Like Traditional Media, New Media also had a “push” approach
in regards to content delivery. However, their consumers now had many choices
in regards to topics.
New Media had an accelerated growth pace. Which is extremely
visible due to the fact that media revolutionized in the 2000s.
Digital Media emerged in the 200s. Their target audience was
targeted, unlike the previous two eras. Their main channels were the Internet
and Mobile Phones. Today we walk around with smart devices on us at all times,
allowing digital media to reach us at any time or place.
Examples of companies that dominated digital media are
Google and Yahoo.
Unlike the previous two eras, digital media has a “pull”
approach in regards to content delivery. Because of their infinite choices,
consumers are pulled to digital media. People can now find topics they are
interested and ignore anything else.
The growth pace of digital media is rapid.
As we can clearly see today, digital media is on a constant
incline. There are new changes on a yearly bases that manage to continuously
change the way that we interact with the media.
A huge example should be printed newspapers. People believe
that they only continue to exist out of habit for the previous generations. A majority
of the people revert to the online versions of news outlets to gain
information.
There are many known TV channels that started off as radio
channels. Whenever a new media outlet comes to place, old ones adapt to stay
used. People who grew up pre 2000 notice this more. There are so any objects
that have become obsolete due to the advances in technology.
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