Unit 7- Understanding the Television and Film Industries

KNOW ABOUT TECHNOLOGIES, OWNERSHIP AND FUNDING IN THE TELEVISION AND FILM INDUSTRIES:

"Television has become our eyes, the telephone our mouth and ears; our brains are the interchange for a nervous system that stretches across the world."

(Benjamin Wooley- http://thetvandfilmindustry.blogspot.com/)

Technology is a concrete part of our everyday lives. Almost every task or event are supported by using technology. The television controls our opinions and perspective of the world- it chooses what we see and hear. Our brains constantly have information flowing throughout them and the ‘interchange’ is what we choose to acknowledge and understand. Without technology the world would be a completely different place, this is due to the fact nobody would be able to communicate apart from verbal face-to-face speech. We couldn’t read the paper and become informed about global events. Without the radio there would be no entertainment or music- this is because the radio was the first way music was broadcast. Technology is slowly creeping into our lives and controlling us.

Can you imagine your life without it?

No.

But is the wide range of ever changing technology necessarily a good thing?

The term “new media” describes the type of media technology which improves a piece of technology which is similar to it. For example a DVD player is new media because it is more technologically advanced that the VHS player. The main search engines used are AOL, Google and Yahoo. AOL is predominantly known for its online software. AOL is one of the most popular search engines because its membership is over 30 million members’ world wide, these members are able to access the worlds largest online community. Google enables everyone to browse the World Wide Web; this type of technology is possible as Google scans the keywords which have being typed into the search box. Lastly Yahoo is a popular American based search engine; Yahoo also has a directory which the public are able to add listings.

It is shocking how TV has developed. It started off with having four basic channels. BBC1, BBC 2, ITV and Channel 4. However now there are approximately 1000 channels to choose from. However hit series’ such as Nip/Tuck, Desperate Housewives and Lost are broadcast in America before the United Kingdom- therefore as a result of this more and more people are choosing to watch the shows on the Internet.

"Most episodes come online about half an hour after it first airs in the US,"

(Dr David Price- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6151118.stm)

Advanced technology has meant that films or TV programmes can be viewed in a wide variety of ways. The most popular been the iPod, or any other portable technology advice. It is facts like these that make the question- “Will TV eventually disappear?”

Before this huge advance in technology families would sit in front of the TV and watch the same programme and communicate throughout it. However now with more flexible ways such as Sky+ to view programmes, the family are not having this time together and as a result our social habits have been effected by this viewing habit. We are however able to interact with the TV by shows such as The X Factor and Big Brother as we are able to vote for the final winner. Also TV shows such as Echo Beach and Moving Wallpaper enabled the audience to vote for how the series should end.

The TV license pays for the BBC. The BBC does not show commercial breaks in the middle of programmes and therefore the TV license pays for this. However another channel such as ITV is a commercial station and therefore the companies pay ITV to broadcast there advert. Public broadcasting involves predominantly radio and television media industries. Public broadcasting is when the company receive funding through voluntary donations. For example a television license fee. TiVo® is the American version of Sky+; it enables the viewer to view their favourite shows at their own leisure and to fit their own personal schedule. The TiVo® has the technology to connect with the internet and access films, music, photos and products.

The technology of satellite TV enables the viewer to browse individual programmes or movies at their own leisure for an additional cost. When pay-per-view was first invented the system was restricted only for certain times. However today pay-per-view is now known as ‘impulse’ this enables you to order movies from a wider selection through your TV. The adverts for commercial TV are paid for by the company of the product. For example dVb perfume will pay more for an advertising slot at the end of the Coronation Street because more of the general public will see the advert and consequently more people will buy their product. Another funding technique is product placement- this involves the filmmakers agreeing to place the company’s product or logo visable within the shots. For example Manolo Blahnik shoes in Sex and The City.

An example of this Britney Spears advertising her own perfumes at the start of the ‘Circus’ video.

Keith Rupert Murdoch owns the famous firm, News Corporation. The company produces different types of media. For example films, television, cable programming, satellite television, magazines, newspapers, books, websites and sporting events. However some people may view this as a negative thing. This is because it could easily be considered that Rupert Murdoch has too much power and influence over the world- this can then lead to people only viewing his opinions and believes and not having a full understanding and knowledge of other peoples views.

Cultural imperialism involves both political and business practises and media products from one culture having a considerable influence on another. However the influences that this causes may be considered imperialistic as they ignore local customs. For example if the hit TV show ‘24’ was broadcasted in the third world country Kenya then consequently Kenya would become more Americanised. This is due to the fact that the constant stream of advertisement will make the country feel that they need to be more adapted, this can cause many global issues such as; war and controversy.

Task 1-P1, M1, D1

The analogue stations, which are available to anybody who buys a television, are the BBC, BBC2, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, these five channels are available on Digital Terrestrial Television. To gain access to Freeview only one singular payment is required instead of paying a contract. In return for the one off payment you are able to view up to 30 free digital channels, including radio. To have satellite TV the viewer must pay a monthly charge, satellite TV is received when signals are sent to an orbit and are then sent back down to Earth to be received by the dish, which the user will need along with a set top box. According to a recent survey 55% percent of people have cable television whereas 28% have satellite television. The world wide switch over to digital television is not likely to happen before 2010. The government has said it wants to gradually terminate analogue broadcasts between the years 2006 and 2010.

If you have Sky, cable or Freeview then on TV shows, mainly talent shows such as Strictly Come Dancing and The X Factor, then a red dot will appear in the top corner of the TV screen. This red dot symbolises that the programme has additional interaction and also interactive ‘exclusive’ extras; to access the additional entertainment the viewer simply presses the red button on their remote.

The public are able to watch TV programmes and movies over the internet with the most popular search engine for entertainment, YouTube. The video sharing website is a free search engine in which the public are able to upload videos for other people to view. However despite YouTube publishing warnings such as:

“Do not upload any TV shows, music videos, music concerts

or commercials without permission unless they consist entirely of content you created yourself. The Copyright Tips page and the Community Guidelines can help you determine whether your video infringes someone else's copyright.”

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/YouTube#Social_impact)

Regardless of this warning streams of footage which go against this warning can be found on the website- this footage can range from TV programmes, concerts, music videos all the way through to films. A criticism with YouTube is that the search engine does not view any of the uploaded videos before they are broadcast and allowed to be viewed by the public. Therefore because of this reason organizations such as the English Premier League have issued formal lawsuits against YouTube. The lawsuits state that YouTube do not do enough to prevent illegal or offensive material on the website. This is true to a certain extent as they do not view footage before it been broadcast on a worldwide scale, however, the sheer amount of videos which are uploaded per day it is virtually impossible to throughly check every single clip. In July 2006 more than 100 million videos were viewed per day along with this 65,000 videos were added in one day in 2006.

On 4OD, standing for 4 On Demand, television shows are able to be rented for 99p and other films will be available from £1.99. 4OD enables the public to watch programmes which have recently been broadcast on Channel 4, E4 or on More4.

Eventually in the near future I think that mass audiences will eventually expire. This is because before the technology of cable, Sky and Freeview the public only had access to the five main terrestrial channels- BBC, BBC2, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5. However now that the modern technology has become part of our everyday lives the audience has more choice which means that the audience figures diminish due to the fact that the wide variety of choice means that people are not assigned to a certain channel. They can therefore pick a channel that is accustomed and more suited to the entertainment they prefer or want to watch. Due to the the audiences being broken down into niche audiences advertisers have had to change which adverts they broadcast and at what time.

Task 2- P1, M1, D1

Sky has 10 different ways of communication regarding the need for entertainment. These are: Sky TV, Sky+, Sky+ HD, Sky Multiroom, Sky broadband, Sky talk, Sky.com, Sky player, Mobile services and Freesat from Sky.

Sky+ is a piece of technology, which over 12 million people own in 3.7 million homes, which enables the public to record up to 40 hours of their favourite programmes, films and documentaries and then watch them through the Sky+ Planner whenever they like to help fit their busy schedule. The Live Pause feature means that nothing will stop you missing out on the action, if the phone rings simply press the pause button and then press play to catch up. Sky+ also enables the buyer to record every episode of their favourite programme by pressing the Series Link button.

Sky+ HD was launched in May 2006 and at the end of June 2008 had an impressive half a million customers. Sky+ HD customers are given access to 10,000 hours of footage- all with sharper images, brighter colours and four times more detail compared to television not in the HD format.

The typical British family- Mum, Dad and children. Dad enjoys watching documentaries, Mum likes cookery, travel and lifestyle programmes whereas the two teenage girls would rather watch Friends, Sex and The City or Americas Next Top Model. Sky came up with the technology of Sky Multiroom to help everyone watch what they want to, when they want to. Each additional Multiroom box costs £10 and for this cost people can watch their programmes in a different room of the house.

The Sky Broadband was launched in August 2006, the broadband Britain’s most popular, and therefore fastest growing and selling broadband service and is currently operating in approximately 1.6 million homes and offers exclusive material for Sky TV customers. For no monthly charge the customers can get a download speed of 2Mb. The Sky Broadband is s popular that it has being accepted in the “Broadbandchoices.co.uk Customer Satisfaction Awards”. In these awards Sky was voted “Best Overall Provider’.

Sky Talk is the fastest growing home provider in the UK and achieved one million customers in the early months of 2008. There are two packages that you can choose from, firstly, Sky Talk Freetime which offers the customer free UK evening and weekend calls without a monthly charge. And secondly Sky Talk Unlimited offers unlimited UK calls at whatever time of day for £5 per month. Sky Talk also offers line rental for £10.

Sky.com gives information about online brands such as Sky News for example. When using Sky.com a range of applications are incorporated into the site such as photos and emails. The network of sites attracts millions of individual users each month. The Sky Player is a collection of programmes, such as, sports, lifestyle, cookery, films and documentaries online. The Sky Player puts forward thousands of programmes in an on demand style and customers can view the footage whenever they choose as they are made for download too. The majority of the Sky Player is available with no additional cost for Sky TV customers.

Task 3-

“Today we find ourselves at a crossroads for public service broadcasting. For decades our public service broadcasting system has delivered high quality UK produced programmes from a number of providers across a range of genres.”

Ofcom’s Second Public Service Broadcasting Review

The Public Service Broadcasting is paid for by the public. The BBC is paid for by the public and therefore they address the wants and needs of the audience and answers to them. The BBC is guaranteed their income and therefore has a continuous flow of money coming into the company which enables them to spend money to broadcast a wide range of quality programmes to address what the public want to watch. The main aim of the BBC is to create programmes which are guaranteed to appeal to all members of society. For example: Eastenders is targeted to the younger, teenager generation whereas Strictly Come Dancing, which is targeted at the older generation of people. All programmes which are paid for by PSB represent society and therefore have to achieve three main purposes- inform, educate and entertain.

To conclude, the BBC is contracted to make a wide variety of programmes to suit the wants, needs and desires of different people in our society. After all it is the audience who help the BBC fund these programmes which they are producing. A positive outcome from the BBC being funded by public service broadcasting is that the BBC do not have to worry about backing down due to added pressure from the advertisers and can be more daring in their programming.

Understand contractual, legal and ethical obligations in the television and film industries

Shift work is the type of employment in which the employer will not work the standard working day. This includes both long term night shifts, in these types of shifts the employees will change or rotate shifts.

A "fixed-term" employee would be a full time employee who has an actual contract for employment. This contract will specify a period of time. The actual range of services that the employee will provide should be extremely defined in this contract. If the employer wants to end the agreement before completing the allocated period of time, they must provide a good enough reason that would have become payable under this kind of contract.

A "freelance" employee is not officially an employee, but instead is viewed as an independent contractor. The freelancer comes in for a specific task or period of time, and during this time there is no attempt to make a relationship. Usually, a freelancer is not entitled to any benefits such as insurance. Therefore the freelancer sets their own work hours which fits around the employer's needs.

‘Office hours’ are usually from around 8am to 5pm every Monday to Friday. The best example of this is a secretary.

The ‘hourly rate’ working pattern is simply when the employee is paid a fixed amount, for example £5.26, every hour. Hourly rate is not depending on how much work the employee does but just how long they work for.

Piece work describes types of employment in which an employee is paid a fixed "piece rate" for each item they produce or what action they have performed. Piece work is also a form of PRP, which stands for Performance Related Pay, and is the oldest form of performance pay. Piece work is beneficial to the company which has employed the employee because the employee is more motivated as they know the more work they do the more they will get paid, as an end result this means that the company has more products to sell.

The ‘irregular pattern’ is when the employee is only working when needed. For example a costume designer which specialises in period dramas will only be asked to make costumes when a drama is being made, this is because period dramas are not continuously made like soaps such as Hollyoaks and Eastenders. Another example of ‘irregular pattern’ work is a cameraman who specialises in wildlife programmes, the reason for this is because as they specialise in just one type of work this limits the amount of work that they can be signed up to do.

‘Casual work’ is doing the odd job for a company such as holding a boom microphone when you are free and your skills are required.

Secondment is working in a different department of a company for a certain amount of time but then returning back to where you started from.

Under flexible, there is a time of the day when employees are expected to be at work, for the rest of the working day is "flexitime", in which employees can choose when they work.

Voluntary work is work which a person does in their own time, either for experience or to make money, this can be anything. For examples extra in Eastenders are constantly required. Extra can be paid or unpaid, it depends on the role and the company.

An attachment contract is when a celebrity is assigned to one specific company. For example Jonathan Ross is attached to the BBC and can only work for that channel and BBC radio stations. An exception of this is for charities such as Comic Relief.

People in the media industry are often required to sign confidentiality agreements. Examples of people having to do this are actors and actresses in soaps keeping quiet about plot lines so that they are not leaked to the press, as a backup incase this happens, sometimes the soaps film several alternative endings so that the press can never be totally sure about the ending. Another example is working with the Primeminster and in an interview he asks for a certain part not to be broadcast in the final production, this confidentiality agreement stops you from informing the press on what he doesn’t want the public to know. Some types of contracts state that the employee can only be employed by that organisation. An example of this is Jon Snow presenting Channel 4 news as you will not see him appear on any other show or news programme.

When discussing health and safety in a film and television related context, there are many factors which may lead to a serious accident. These being lights, water, cranes, wires and many more. By law All companies with five or more employees have to have a Health and Safety Policy. In this Health and Safety policy, details of the company actions on issues like risk assessments are discussed. Every company must give all employees equal oppourtunies and not discriminate against race, gender, colour or background. To ensure that nobody is discriminated against the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 is a piece of legislation which came into force on October 1st 2006.

A Trade Union is an organisation of which members belong to the same trade, for example teachers, that act as a group and discuss common issues or problems in their jobs. An example of intellectual property is a trademark. A trademark is a word, symbol, or phrase which the public can recognise and therefore identify a company or product. For example Disney and iLife.

Risk assessments are made prior to the movie or television show being produced. This is to ensure that every member of the crew and cast are aware of risks which may happen. By looking at a risk assessment the producers can be sure to prepare incase any of the hazards arise. I have made a risk assessment for a movie called “Invasion” which is shot in Leeds City Train Centre.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channel_4#4oD

www.google.com

http://thetvandfilmindustry.blogspot.com/

http://members.aol.com/aj2x/oldtv.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6151118.stm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echo_Beach_(Soap)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_broadcasting

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licence

http://www.tivo.com/whatistivo/tivois/index.html

http://userhome.brooklyn.cuny.edu/anthro/jbeatty/COURSES/glossary.htm

http://www.catgraphics.co.za/component/option,com_rd_glossary/task,showpart/part,Y/Itemid,65/

http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=define%3A+sponsorship&spell=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rupert_Murdoch

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/YouTube#Social_impact)

http://corporate.sky.com/about_sky/what_we_do/our_products_and_services.htm