Developing Technologies in the TV and Film Industries

The television and film industries is an on-going development of technology. All the time things are being changed and improved, to enhance the viewers experience. The latest of these improved technologies are 3D television.


3D Television
The way 3D television is created is actually quite simple. It's where 2 cameras are put close together while filming something, and each camera represents the left and the right eye. This gives us the illusion that we are more involved in the film or TV program. So it's taking two normal 2D shots and putting one infront of the other to create the 3D effect. When watching something in 3D you have to wear 3D glasses to get the full effect of what your watching, otherwise the picture would be blurred.

Satellite Television
Satellite television is television programming where the communications are received by an outdoor satellite. This is why sometimes yuo see big satellite dishes on the front or back of peoples houses. In many areas of the world satellite television provides a wide range of channels and services, often to areas that are not serviced by terrestrial or cable providers.
Direct-broadcast satellite television comes to the general public in two distinct flavors - analog and digital. This necessitates either having an analog satellite receiver or a digital satellite receiver. Analog satellite television is being replaced by digital satellite television and the latter is becoming available in a better quality known as high-definition television. With satellite television, there is more chance of losing the signal in bad weather because it affects the signals. So it is not always a reliable way to watch television.

Cable Television
Cable television is a system of providing tv to customers using signals that are transmitted through cables. Most television sets are cable-ready and have a cable television tuner capable of receiving cable TV already built-in that is delivered as an analog signal. To obtain premium television most televisions require a set top box called a cable converter that processes digital signals. It's been said that cable is better than satellite, as their is less chance of losing connection in bad weather.

Interactive Television
Interactive television (generally known as ITV or sometimes as iTV when used as branding) describes a number of techniques that allow viewers to interact with television content as they view it. The term "interactive television" is used to refer to a variety of rather different kinds of interactivity and this can lead to considerable misunderstanding. The most obvious example of 'interactive television' would be any kind of real-time voting on the screen, in which audience votes create decisions that are reflected in how the show continues. A return path to the program provider is not necessary to have an interactive program experience. Once a movie is downloaded for example, controls may all be local.

High Definition Television
HDTV is different from other types of television because the resolution is higher. The resolution being higher enhances the quality of the picture on screen. HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD (standard-definition). Early HDTV broadcasting used analog techniques, but today HDTV is digitally broadcast using video compression. Some people can't tell the difference between normal TV and HDTV but some can. The difference is that HD gives a better picture quality so the quality of what you are watching is higher.

Streaming Media and Internet Television

Streaming media is a 'multimedia'. It is content that is sent over the internet in a compressed form, whihc the user then watches. The distinction is usually applied to media that are distributed over telecommunications networks, as most other delivery systems are either inherently streaming (e.g., radio, television) or inherently non-streaming (e.g., books, video cassettes, audio CDs). The verb 'to stream' is also derived from this term, meaning to deliver media in this manner. Internet television is a commonly streamed medium.This also covers BBC iPlayer, ITV Player, 4oD etc. I think the good thing about these are that they are there at your ocnvenience. If you miss something on tv then you have the option to catch-up online or on television.

Digital Recorders
Digital TV recorders are similair to video recorders in that you can record television programmes to watch at a later date.  Some other benefits of the new digital tv recorders are as follows; Pause and rewind live tv, recording a complete series in one touch and viewing electronic program guides.  Sky and Virgin Media are good examples of this. The Sky+ HD Box can record up to 60 Gigabytes of programming, record entire series through series link, record up to two programms simultaneously and many more. Virgin TV uses the TiVo technology and works in the same way.

Pay Per View
Pay-per-view (PPV) provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it. Events often include feature films, sporting events and entertainment. An exmaple of this is Sky in the UK. They have the channel SkyBoxOffice for their pay per view options, ehich gives the customer a choice whether they want to pay to view whatever it is. At home we have the choice to pay extra for sky box office, but even though we dont its good that the option is still there. It's the customers choice whether to choose the pay-per-view option, but i suppose it depends on how much you want to spend when your bill comes in at the end of the month.


Film Based
Lots of films nowadays use computer-generated imagery (CGI). There are 2 different types of CGI, 3D Animation and Motion Capture Animation. 3D Animation is where 2D and 3D graphics are added to create 'special effects', and is use in both animated and non-animated films. The main reasons they use this is to create a high quality in the film and you become in control. It allows the user to create and produce images that wouldnt be real in life, but they try to make it as realistic as possible, and most of the time it works. Prime examples of films that use CGI is Toy Story, Shrek, Happy Feet and Pirate of the Caribbean. Aswell as CGI there are Motion Capture Animation which is used in all the old disney films such as Cinderella. The video below of Cinderlla shows a mass difference in the wuality of the films, and it shows how much technology has changed. Modern CGI in my opinion is much better, but there a few films where it has been overused and you lose interest in it. Some disadvantages of using CGI is that it a slow program due to how many codes and http requests it requires. Below are 2 examples of 3D Animation (CGI) and Stop Motion Animation.

3D Animation



Moion Graphic Animation

From all this i can see that there is so many different types of television, and everyones uuses atleast one of them. It's hard to come up with new ideas for televison as it is already so technically advanced 3D TV for example. But maybe there could be 4D in the future? Not many people are bothered about how advanced technology is, but its clear that designers will not stop at 3D television. Although 3D television is supposed to enhance the viewers experience, some people cant tell much difference between that and a normal standard definition tv.

Regulation of the Media Sector

British Video Association
The British Video Association is an organisation, and is the trade body that represents the interests of publishers and rights owners of video entertainment. They represent the industry's interests to the media, the government, the public and othe industry organisations.

Film Distributors Association,

Film Distributors' Association Ltd. (FDA) is the trade body for theatrical film distributors in the UK - the companies that release films for UK  cinema audiences.

Video Standards Council (VSC)

The VSC was established in 1989 and was set up to develop and oversee a Code of Practice designed to promote high standards within the video industry. The video and game industries owe a duty of car to customers and they do everything they can to ensure that they obey that duty.

Trading Standards

The Trading Standards Institute is a professional membership assocation formed in 1881. It aims to promote and protect the succes of a modern vibrant economy.

It has 5 main corperate aims and these are:

• To Support TSI Members and TS Services so the trading standards profession can innovate, sustain outcomes and develop new practitioners.
• To develop innovative solutions through anticipating and responding to the changing needs of our members.
• To make an operating contribution through diversification so that our ambitions can be realised.
• To expand our influence and operations through International market surveillance solutions.
• To ensure our campaigns, products and policies have high impact.

Press Complaints Commission (PCC)

The Press Complaines Commision is an independent body which deals with complaints that our outlines in the Editors Code of Practice about the editorial content of newspapers and magazines. The PCC feel like they should hold the editors to account when a complaint is made, because they are there to serve, help and protect the public.

Advertising Standards Authority (ASA)

The Advertising Standards Authority is the UK's independent regulator of advertising across all media. This also include marketing on websites. The ASA plays and important role in todays world. It inform, entertains, and promotes healthy compettition. The aim at the ASA is to ensure that consumers do not just enjoy the ads they see, but they can trust them too.They work to ensure ads are legal, decent, honest and truthful by applying the Advertising Codes.

The Mobile Entertainment Forum (MEF)

MEF is the global community for mobile content and commerce. The MEF shapes the ongoing development of the industry, connects the industry, and monetizes in partnership with its members. They do this by creating initiatives. 

The Independent Games Developers Association (IGDA)

IGDA is the professional society for over 10,000 vedio and computer game developers worldwide.

The International Game Developers Association is the largest non-profit membership organization serving individuals who create video games. They bring together developers at conferences, in local chapters and in special interest groups to improve their lives and craft.

British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA)

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is the UK's leading independent charity working with the film, TV and video games industries. They develop and promote the art forms of the moving image in the UK - from Film and Television to Video Games and Interactive Media. 

Commercial Radio Companies Association (CRCA)
The CRCA is the trade body for UK commercial UK. It manages the Radio Advertising ClearanceCentre which clears national and special category advertisements prior to
broadcast.

The International Visual Communication Association (IVCA)
The international Visual Communication Association exists to represent members to government. Thye work with production companies, freelancers, support service providers and clients of the industry to represent their interests and help maximize their competitiveness and professionalism.

Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C)
The Worldwide Web Consortium is a international community where members, staff and the public work together to develop web standards.

British Web Design and Marketing Association
The UKDWA was established in 2001 and they promote industry standards within the british web design and new media sector.

British Interactive Multimedia Association (BIMA)

BIMA has represented the diverse interests of the British digital industry for 25 years.
BIMA is dedicated to serving a membership in the UK and abroad. Locally, they are active in discussions with Government, leading industry players and other partner associations. Globally, they represent and champion the UK multimedia industry.

Regulatory Issues:

Ownership
It's important in the media not to have companys that overpower others. We dont want to end up in a world where just one media company owns all the media and becomes powerful than the rest.

Monopoly
The term 'Monopoly' mean where there is only one company who owns the worlds media. The problem with this is that it leads eveyone to beleive that what they tell you on the news is all true, when in reality it isn't. the issue with this is that oen company can become overpowerful.

Access
We pay TV liscences in the UK. Regulating bodies need to make decisions on what can be accessed by the public. For example, we pay a TV liscence for the BBC and because the BBC is so diverse and so many different channels, if these cant be accessed then people start to wonder what they are payign the liscence for.

Consumer Choice
Consumer choice ensures people of different ethnicites have programs that meet their taste, and that their is a wide variety of choice for consumers. Also so they can get the best value for moeny to suit their tatstes.

Freedom of Information
If you are a public authority you have a legal obligation to provide information through an approved publication scheme and in response to requests. Find out what you need to do under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Censorship

Regulating bodies are the people that decide what is said. For example radio stations bleep out swearing words on air becasue it will be classed as offensive or people may complain. This does link in with taste and decency as it determines what is accpetable and what isn't.

Taste and Decency
This links in with consumer choice in the way that it's important for pwopleto have a choice on what they want to watch and listen to. But also what is classed as 'decent' enough to be shown before or after certain times. If someone thinks something id being shown at an inappropriate time, then it is OFCOM who will deal with these problems, and they will review what was wrong.

Ethical and Legal Constraints within the Media Sector

Ethical:

Social issues and sensitivities, eg: representation of gender, representation of religious beliefs, linguistic usages, accessibility; professional body codes of practice, eg BBC producers’ guidelines, Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C) accessibility standards.

Legal: 

Broadcasting Act 1990 (and later amendments),

It is a series of laws, that relate to what is legal and illegal to broadcast on TV and radio in the UK. For example, if a TV station decided to show of a pornographic nature, then this would be in breach of the broadcasting act.

Official Secrets Act 1989,

It is illegal to disclose information regarding national security.  If a newspaper published a story about the technical capabilities and shortcomings of Englands latest warships. This would then threaten the safety of the country and its people, and therefore endanger national security.

Obscene Publications Act 1959 (and later amendments),

Laws relating to obscene material being published. For example, if a magazine or newspaper published images that were in bad taste, then this would breach the obscene publicatons act.

Films Act 1985,

This is Laws concerning film finance and defining British films.

Video Recordings Act 1984,

Laws stating that all videos that are sold or available for rental must be classified by the BBFC. A breach of this act would be videos not being classified or released, and somebody purchasing this off for example, a market.

Race Relations Act 1976 (and later amendments),

The race relations act 1976  was established by the Parliament of the united kingdom to prevent discrimination on the grounds of race. Items that are covered include discrimination on the grounds of race, colour, nationality, ethnic and national origins in the fields of employment, the provision of good and services, education and public functions. An example of a breach of this law woukd be if the BBC were to advertse a job and only accept applications from ethnic ninority groups, this would discriminate against people not of an ethnic minority.

Human Rights Act 1998,

Rights that are believed to belong justifiably to every person.

Licensing Act 2003 (and later amendments);
This is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that applies only to England and Wales. The Act establishes a single integrated scheme for licensing premises which are used for the sale or supply of alcohol, to provide regulated entertainment, or to provide late night refreshment.

  

Privacy Law;

Is the right to be left alone. Privacy laws are concidered in the context of an individuals rights or expectation of privacy. Its to ensure broadcasters avoid any infringement of privacy in programmes and in connection with obtaining material included in programmes. Any infringement of privacy must be warrented.

Copyright and Intellectual Property Law;

protects written works including musical, theatrically and artistic. Also protects film, book layouts, sound recordings and broadcasts. Copyright is an automatic right that you don't have to apply for.

Libel Law

Laws stating that no slander or defamation shall be aimed at one particular individual or group etc.
A Famous Legal Case In The Media
A famous legal case was brought to the high court involving  Jamie Theakston v Mirror Group Newspapers Ltd. Jamie Theakston attempted to injunct the Sunday People from publishing a story about how he visited a brothel in Mayfair, London. Theakston argued that the publication of the story breached his right to privacy under Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights. He said that the activities had takern place privately and therefore it should be treated as confidential and that the publication had no public interest. The Sunday People then argued back that the publication of the story was in the public interest given the concern of the BBC, to ensure that presenters of programmes aimed at younger people conduct thenselves appropriately in public. The court were skeptical of Theakston's assertion that he only realised he was in a brothel when other prostitutes entered the room. Theakston failed at his attempt to injuct the Sunday People.

BBFC
The BBFC stands for the British Board of Film Classification. It is an independent body which classifies things in the media such as television programmes, films, advertisements and video games. They are responsible for the classification  of these things in the United Kingdom. The classification restricts the age in which the content can be viewed, as some things may not be suitable for people or children of a certain age. They all have to be classidied and certified, and if not they will be broadcasting them illegally, so it's very important.


OFCOM
OFCOM is the Office of Communications. It operates under the Communications Act 2003 to, and their main duties further the interests of citizens and of consumers. They check that prgrammes are suitable for viewing and if any complaints were to occur, then OFCOM are 'police' people that would investigate into the complaints.




Codes of Practice
A code of practice is a set of wriitten rules or guidelines which explains how people working in different industries and environment should behave. This means stuff like having to wear a uniform or have to act a certain way towards customers and colleagues. It is ussued by a professional body to it's members to help them comply with its ethical standards.

 Editors' Code of Practice
All members who work for the magazine and newspsper industry, have to mainitain high  standards at all times. They need to follow these guidelines of the Code of Practice to protect themselves from any legal issues that may occur. It covers issues such as accuracy, privacy, oppurtunity to reply and children.


Media Representation
Representation is where producers make ethical judgements on how aspects of the media are portrayed. For example, people, places, objects, events, cultural identities and other abstract concepts. Things such as age  and gender affect these decisions. An example of a negative representation is a place such as Mossside near Manchester. We see Mossside as dangerous place, we associate it with the black community and also with guns, crime and violence. We have this negative perspective on such a place because of how it is exampled in the media. On the news, it's likely to see gun crime that has took place in this certain area, although some things may not be true this is how it is perceived by us therefore, makes a negative representation of the people who live there and the area. 

Getting To Grips With The TV & Film Industry

The BBC is the largest broadcasting organisation in the world and is a public service broadcaster, established by a Royal Charter and funded by the licence fee that is paid by UK households. It was founded on 18th October 1922. The BBC uses the income from the licence fee to provide services including 8 national TV channels plus regional programming, 10 national radio stations, 40 local radio stations and an extensive website. BBC World Service broadcasts to the world on radio, on TV and online, providing news and information in 32 languages. It is funded by a government grant, not from the licence fee. The BBC also has a commercial arm, BBC Worldwide. Its profits are returned to the BBC for investment in new programming and services. It's headquarters are based in London but the area it serves is worldwide. The BBC has diversified into many different things such as the internet, radio, nes, television and interactive television. The BBC cannot do any form of advertising either as it is a Public Service Boradcaster. They also can't make any judgment or be biased towards any political parties.

Film Financing

There are many ways in which films get funding to make a film. Im going to be talking about the four main methods which help to get the money they need to fund a film. These four methods are Government Grants, Tax Schemes, Debt Finance and Equity Finance.


The term Governement Grants means where a number of governments run programs to subsidise the cost of producing films. For instance, in the United Kingdom the UK Film Council provides funding to producers provided certain conditions are met. Also, for exmaple, states in America such as New York and Oklamhoma provide a subsidy on the basis that all guidelines are met, and all or part of the film is filmed int hat state.These Governments are willing to provide these subsidies as they hope it will attract creative individuals to their territory and stimulate employment. Government subsidies are pure grants most of the time, where the government expects no financial return.


Tax Schemes are created which effectively sell the enhanced tax deductions to wealthy individuals with large tax liabilities. The individuals pay the producer a fee in order to obtain the tax deductions. The individual will often become the legal owner of the film or certain rights relating to the film, but the producer will in substance continue as the real owner of the economic rights to exploit the film. Also, films with little commercial or artistic merit are produced simply to generate tax deductions.


Debt Finance is based on pre-sales and television pre-sales. Based on the script and cast, pre-sale is selling the right to distribute a film in different territories before the film is completed. If a film has a big name in it and the rights are sold, they expect the film to do well once it has been made. Once the deal has been made the distributor will insist that the producer delivers on certain elements of the content and cast. Upon the singing of a pre-sale, a deposit of 20% will be made by the buyer into the films bank account. Although it is more usual for a producer to sell the TV rights of this film after it has been made, it is sometimes possible to sell the rights in advance and use the money to pay for the production. In some cases the television station will be a subsidiary of the movie studio's parent company.


The fourth method is Equity Finance. Equity financing requires the filmmaker to sell interests in either the film or film company in exchange for the funding. The of this method is that the investor will only recieve his money back if the film shows a return. If a filmmaker sells 50% of the corporate interest to an investor, for example, then the investor will lose his entire investment if the film is a complete failure. If the film is a tremendous success, the investor will receive 50% of every £/$ of profit, which is far more than what a lender would get.

Television Funding

TV channels make their money through different types of funding, depending on the type of broadcasting. There are 3 types of broadcasting which are Public Service, Commercial and Subscriber. An exmaple of a Public Service Broadcaster is the BBC. Its television service makes it's money by the government through the liscence fee, syndication, competitions and merchandising. The liscence fee is £145.50 a year, which works out as £12.13 a month and 66% of this value goes to the BBC. They make more of their money through syndication by selling the rights of shows and programmes to other networks so they can broadcast them too. Eastenders is an exmaple of a syndicated program through the BBC. The rest of their funding is made through merchandising and competitions. The BBC merchandises many things and it has its own website and shop so customers can purchase these items. the rest of their moeny is made through competetions. The BBC hosts competitions, which persuades epople to phone up and vote. Its the cost of the voting which contributes tot he funding of BBC television.


On the other hand, Commercial Broadcasters such as ITV and Channel 5 make their money by advertising, aswell as sponsership, syndication, competitions and merchandising. ITV was the country's first commercial television provider. Advertisements are the main source of income for ITV so they try to have as many as they can throughout programmes. ITV aim to build and bring brands to life by sound, vision, motion, emotion and impact. Commercial Boradcasters as well as Public Service Boradcasters make their money through syndication. An example of a syndicated program is Coronation Street, as it is shown on +1 networks. A significant number of Channel 5 programmes are syndicated too, for example Home and Away and Big Brother. Syndication starts off in the country in which the program is first issued then it can expand to international usage. Like the BBC, ITV and Channel 5 host a lot of competitions. For example, the X Factor makes millions of pounds through its voting on the acts. This is also a popular show therefore advertising revenue can be higher. Live phone-ins and text messages that are voting for something is what makes the company's a bit of money. Both of these TV companies also use merchandising to gain money. On their websites they have links to their merchandisning sites where consumers can buy stuff that has been shown on programs.


Channel 4 is part Public Service and part Commerical Broadcaster. It is not publicly funded but it is independent on the Government. They are predominantly funded by sponsorship and advertising.and governed by a unitary board made up of executive and non-executive directors, who are responsible for ensuring that Channel 4 fulfils its remit and delivers its financial responsibilities. Channel 4 also has sponsorships. These sponsorships can give a brand instant fame and make them stand-out. It's great for raising awareness and Channel 4 offer a creative process with acareand insight, so they can deliver the best return on investment. Like the BBC, ITV and Channel 5, Channel 4 also make money through syndication and competitions. Channel 4 syndicates programmes such as Hollyoaks and The Big Bang Theory.


The last one are Subscriber Boradcasters. These are Sky and Virgin Media and are different from the others because customers subscribe to their network and pay for the packages that they offer. The packages contain direct broadcast satellite, television, broadband and telephone services. Sky and Virgin both make money through advertising too, aswell as syndication, competitions and merchandising. Also, the quality of the programmes shown depends on whether a person will subscribe to them, so its important for Sky and Virgin to show great programmes so they can attract the customers to subscribe to them. Otherwise they wouldnt make much money. There is a lot of competition between these 2 companies, and they are constantly bringing out different packages in hope of new customers subscribing to their networks.                           

Getting To Grips With The TV & Film Industry

Im going to be researching the ownership of two companies in the TV and film industries.

 The first one ill be looking at is 20th Century Fox. It was founded on May 31st 1935 as a result of the merger of Fox Film Corporation which was founded by William Fox in 1915, and is now one of six major american film studios as of 2011.  It used to be privately owned up until 1985, when News Corporation took over. It's now a multi-national media conglomerate and a subsidiary of News Corporation owned by Rupert Murdoch. Over the years Fox has had to expand its studios and production facilities countless times, as the demand for more good films was getting higher, and there just wasnt enough room anymore. 20th Century Fox has 9 subsidiaries and its parent if the Fox Entertainment Group. It diversified itself into the world of music too, as well as film and it encompasses music publishing and licensing businesses, dealing primarily with Fox Entertainment Group television and film soundtracks. Fox has faced many finiacial problems but has overcome these, and still to this day is a very successful film company.