Media Convergence
The idea of convergence is ever fluid and changing. Companies are encouraged to cross boundaries and form new innovations that consumers will latch onto. Different modes of media are joining together in the hopes that they will hit the jackpot combination. Companies have unified. They use each other by asking viewers to cast votes for live talent shows on Twitter. There are many different media platforms trying to work together in a variety of new contexts, but the ultimate media platform that facilitates every media user’s needs is still beyond reach.
Individuals want control (or to feel in control) over their media, which is part of the reason why complete convergence is not possible. Viewers moved away from the standard television system because it did not offer enough control. Viewers do not want to have to wait for their show to air or wait for commercials. They want access to shows immediately and they want to be able to pause a show on their laptop and get food rather than waiting for an ad break. Another great outcome of media convergence is smart phones. If someone is chatting to a friend about a video, they can pull the video up on their phones rather than waiting until they get home. This gives control to the consumer.
Another reason why television viewing is moving away from an actual TV set is because of the active participation of fans. On a TV, fans cannot engage with the content. But on a computer, fans can engage with other fans and become active participants in the media. Media will always be there, but how consumers access media will change. As Henry Jenkins said in Introduction: “Worship at the Altar of Convergence”, “There will be no single black box that controls the flow of media into our homes. Thanks to the proliferation of channels and the portability of new computing and telecommunication technologies, we are entering an era where media will be everywhere” (16). Media and television consumption cannot be contained in one medium. Convergence will cause it to spread across multiple platforms and protocols.
