Today we live in an era where technology is key to everyday life. Across the globe millions of people have access to technology and are able to accomplish tasks which may once have appeared impossible. With the introduction of devices such as smart phones and games consoles the viewing of film has become more available to audiences worldwide. In this essay i am going to explain why the improvements in technology have affected the film industry and how they affect its audiences.
The introduction of 3D cameras and therefore 3D films has seen audiences flock back to cinemas in recent years. The reasons for this are simple. Firstly, it is a well known fact that 3D films automatically have a better quality picture as HD features are in-cooperated into the production, this allows the audience to experience films in a completely new way as 3D offers a clearer depth of picture as well as the novelty of images 'popping' out of the screen. 3D was officially brought 'back to life' in 2009, when James Cameron released the masterpiece known as 'Avatar.' This particular film astonished audiences worldwide due to the fact that the 3D features were used to enhance the wonderful alien scenery as well as highlight the colours and other animation. These features made the film spectacular and completely rekindled the relationship between audiences and 3D films. However, low budget films such as DREDD were also released in 3D but did not have the same affect on the audience. DREDD used 3D in an attempt to make cheap scenery and average CGI effects appear better than what they actually were in order to attract a larger audience. However, this backfired and eventually led to DREDD becoming a box office failure.
There are also many other negative points surrounding 3D technology. Firstly, although many audiences agree that when used properly, 3D can be a truly amazing experience, they also argue that it is overpriced and is somewhat infuriating because of the irritating glasses which have to be worn. Also, with the further improvements of other forms of technology, audiences are less likely to watch 3D films at the cinema because they find it much more convenient to watch it at home or on the go for a cheaper amount of money.
Since Television became commercially available in the late 1920's, the product itself has undergone hundreds of changes in order to update it and make it a more enjoyable experience for the consumer. Some of these changes include a wider, more slimline screen as well as the addition of HD and 3D features, all of these make the viewing of both standard programmes and films a more enjoyable and better experience for audiences at home. Therefore, changes such as these have boosted TV sales and decreased the overall income of cinemas worldwide, as audiences are now less likely to go and watch films at the cinema, as they may feel as if they have a product which could be classed as 'cinema standard' at home and so do not need to waste money on something which is unnecessary.
There are also different forms of satellite technology such as Sky+HD which also adds to the lack of cinema interest shown by modern day audiences. In this modern era, Sky+HD customers are able to view hundreds of films in HD for a lower amount than they could at the cinema thanks to the movie package as well as Sky Anytime or On Demand. Once again, the cinemas overall income and profits will decrease, due to the fact that a large amount of consumers find it cheaper to view recent HD blockbusters in the comfort of their own homes. The introduction of Sky+HD is also extremely likely to lower the amount of profit films make from DVD and Blu-ray sales, as once again, consumers find it cheaper to view films on Sky, rather than spend unnecessary money on DVDs. However, although a film may not take as much profit from the box office or DVD sales, they still manage to make a large amount of profit through companies such as Sky, as in order to show the most recent blockbusters, Sky itself has to pay for the rights to run the film.
In this modern era, games consoles have become a 'must have' item for people of all ages. Leading Consoles such as the PS3 and the Xbox 360 are popular with both older consumers as well as younger ones, because of their ability to play films as well as games. For example, The PS3 is able to play Blu-ray DVD's and therefore both the cinema and Blu-ray DVD players' profits will decrease, as once again consumers find it easier and cheaper to watch HD films at home. The introduction of Netflix is also another contributing factor to the decrease of DVD and cinema ticket sales. Netflix allows audiences who have a modern games console to view hundreds of films as well as TV programmes online. This is once again cheaper and requires a lower amount of effort from the consumer.
Devices such as Netflix are also now available on smart phones such as the IPhone. This improvement allows smart phone holders to view recent films, on their phones in HD for a cheaper amount than they could at the cinema. The installment of Netflix on smart phones was devastating news to both DVD sales as well as Blu-ray sales, as consumers quickly discovered that they did not need to spend money on un-needed items, as they had already got hundreds of HD films literally in the palm of their hand. Therefore smart phone sales soared and once again cinema ticket sales plummeted. However, although the major fall in cinema ticket sales is a reoccurring theme throughout this essay, many cinema's use different marketing techniques such as synergy marketing to try and drag consumers back to the 'home of film' the cinema. Advertisement such as orange Wednesday's is one ways in which cinema’s regain some of their lost profits. Orange Wednesdays allows orange customers to claim cheap cinema tickets for a film of their choice. However, this particular form of advertising does still not reclaim all of the cinema's lost profits, as not every smart phone user is on an orange contract, and so this rule or deal does not appeal to a large percentage of the overall audience.
To conclude, the improvements in Hardware and content within the film industry attract audiences to the cinema, but draw more away. Although many consumers flock to cinemas to watch huge blockbuster films in 3D, many would argue that they prefer to view films in HD. This is because they are still able to see the creative aspects which the director has included in the film, and can view it in high quality depth and do not have to wear the irritating, uncomfortable glasses for a substantial amount of time. Therefore, a larger amount find it more convenient and cheaper to wait for the film to be released on devices such as Sky or Netflix, so that they can view recent HD films for a cheaper amount of money in the comfort of their own homes.
No comments:
Post a Comment