Danish Future

A ‘Summit of the Future Report’ by the Club of Amsterdam was released recently [pdf].
But, to Monique De Haas’ horror I’m sure they just don’t address all the issues. I guess how can they really? Here are some of the highlights:
They talk about how young people are on the Internet rather than watching TV. Therefore, they say, ‘[b]roadcasters are looking for new ways to grab their audi-
ence and “immerse” them in the way that computer and console games do. That leads to increased demand for interactivity – getting audiences to lean forward.’ (p.96)
I love that: ‘lean forward’.
They also discussed ‘interactivity’:

· Broadcasters like interactivity. The red button is appears more and more frequently. There is evidence to show that people like to vote. For instance, in the UK :
· Olympics – 10 million viewers accessed the service.
· Wimbledon last year – 4.2 million Sky viewers accessed the service.
· Test the Nation (actually a Dutch format from BNN) – I million
· Big Brother – 700,00- viewers paid 25p for enhanced NTL/Telewest service. (p.100)

And another point about the effect of technology on creation:

All this new technology is certainly having an effect on content and style of new programmes seen on TV:
· TV drama moving further away from strict realism to incorporate games and interactive styles (e.g. Green Wing).
· Sports (Olympics, Wimbledon) offer more alternative pathways through experience.
· Reality Shows (Big Brother) dependent on voting
· News channels mimic “Windows” approach of the Internet. (p.101)

They do mention ‘cross-media’ near the end:

There need to be platforms where professionals from all walks of life can think “out of the box” and where general concepts can be discussed in various scenarios. The Club of Amsterdam plays an important role, not only for the discussion of present day challenges but primarily for the cross-media future that is just beginning to dawn. (p.171)

Monique, they needed you!

TimeWarner monster gets bigger and cleverer

On April 27 a TimeWarner press release:

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. (TBS, Inc.), a Time Warner company, today unveiled GameTap, a first-of-its-kind broadband entertainment network that offers games-on-demand plus original programming via a broadband connected PC.

Game Tap will not only be an outlet for post-retail games but it will progress the life of what Klastrup and Tosca term ‘transmedial worlds’ (see my polymorphic narrative site for further details). See how Andrew T. Heller, president of domestic distribution for TBS, Inc. describes the process:

With GameTap, we are bringing to games what we brought to cable television: compelling, branded environments where beloved properties live on.

Oxymorons

It is great to see more ‘distributed art’ being commissioned and called for in exhibitions and collections. It shows an awareness of a hugely emerging area of production. But I can’t quite get my head around this one:

dLux media arts (who do great stuff mind you) is called for works for d>Art.05 with the theme of ‘distributed arts’. It is described as follows:

Under the sub-title “Distributed Art” d>Art.O5 will both present art forms that have an inherently distributed nature (web art, mobile phone art) and investigate new methods for distribution of digital art. (podcasting, BitTorrent, Bluetooth).

There are 3 categories that one can enter through:
– d>Art.O5 Screen: Open to Australian citizens or permanent residents only
– d>Art.O5 Sound: Open to Australian and International artists
– d>Art.O5 Web: Open to Australian and International artists

So, it seems they’re referring to the distribution of a work not a work that is distributed over many texts or mediums. They’re half there.

I find this aspect of my creative works incredibly frustrating. I work with print and online channels and cannot find a journal that would happily like a work that is neither and both. I haven’t asked any journals yet but I’m researching potential avenues of publication. On the one hand I need to get work published in a ‘recognised’ literary journal to assist in my academic career and grant applications, and on the other hand I need new media ‘publications’ for the same reasons. My work straddles both areas quite overtly. Who wants to play with a mutant eh?