Of all the readings this week it was the ilecture that I think I got the most from so thought it would be a good idea to write a bit about it.
The biggest idea I took away from the lecture is that brand loyalty is not just something to be associated with the logos and corporate stationary of financial institutions and fast food outlets but it also plays a large part in today's media production. Loyal consumers of media texts are what makes production companies money as they are the ones that will purchase the DVD box sets, merchandise and pay big money to see live shows. Therefore the emphasis is first on creating "loyals" (Leaver 2011 quoting Jenkins) and then keeping their attention. Here enters the term "Convergence"- the method of telling a story through multiple channels which allows "loyals" to access their favorite media text in a variety of ways - through websites, blogs, movies, merchandise, etc and also allowing fans to interact with their favorite media texts.
The screenwriter - Joss Whedon was used as great example of the powers of a loyal fan base. Leaver states Whedon interacted with fans when writing the television series Buffy the Vampire slayer taking their ideas on board to develop characters and storyline. This removal of the boundary between the producer and consumer created not only a strong fan base for the show but also for Whedon as a writer leading him to experiment with producing a show sans media production / distribution company. The result was Dr Horrible Sing Along Blog - a musical presented in blog format, distributed over the internet and now only available on DVD.
This is an idea that I found inspiring because of the quality of the production. Although a great many of us have access to the technology to make, record and distribute our own media texts - it is not often that one sees a professional looking, well written, series starring well known actors - broadcast primarily through new media outlets. That would be because traditionally one does not make money from releasing their media content for free on the internet. Whedon managed to do it though, by recognising the value of a loyal fan base that wants to be involved with their media, having them contribute to the media text itself and releasing it for sale on DVD.
The point is that loyal fans are crucial to the success of media, especially of those wanting to utilize new media to get their ideas out into the world. This is something that I will need to think about when it comes to my remediation project.
Leaver, D. T. 2011. The Horrible Future of Entertainment Media? http://dbs.ilectures.curtin.edu.au/lectopia/lectopia.lasso?-MaxRecords=50&-SkipRecords=0&-Op=bw&ut=2908&CallbackID=c9abfe8d9710a2f9e3b4ac53998a2578&usr=15055147 (accessed 14/9/11).
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