NDM Case Study ..

How has the impact of new and digital media allow the audience to time shift and watch their programmes online such as BBC Iplayer and 4OD instead of following scheduled timing.

1- Has new and digital media had an impact upon ownership and control of the media institution(s) involved in your case study area? Explain in detail any impact and what exactly has changed.

Has New and Digital media such as BBC iplayer, had an impact upon ownership and control of the media institution (The BBC)? 

My main focus is Television and the BBC, so the new and digital media aspect would be BBC iplayer, in terms of control and ownership - The BBC still have full control and ownership because of the TV license. However, BBC iplayer's main source is the internet therefore the BBC can't charge people to use BBC iplayer. In order to have full control and ownership, the BBC have considered to extend the license fee so it covers BBC iplayer. 

Tony Hall: extend licence fee to cover BBC iPlayer

BBC director general Tony Hall wants the licence fee extended to include the estimated 500,000 UK homes where viewers do not have a TV set but watch corporation programmes on-demand on the iPlayer. The move would enable the BBC to start charging the estimated 2% of households – 500,000 – in the UK which only consume on-demand TV content, rather than watching programmes live. Hall used a speech at the Oxford Media Convention on Wednesday to mount a robust defence of the BBC and the licence fee, saying it was "one of the finest broadcasting organisations in the world" and "great value for money" reaching 96% of the population ever week.

Far from the licence fee being abolished, as some critics have argued, Hall said it should be extended to take account of the different ways in which people consume TV and radio in the digital age, on their computer, iPad or smartphone. "One of the advantages of the licence fee is that it's flexible and has adapted over the years," said Hall. "When and how best to take the next step is, of course, a matter for the government. "Our view is that there is room for modernisation so that the fee applies to the consumption of BBC TV programmes, whether live on BBC 1 or on-demand via the iPlayer or other devices."

• Hall said the BBC's latest research showed that the public was prepared to spend an average of between £15 and £20 for its services, beyond the £12 a month (or £145.50 a year) households currently pay.
• He said the accusation that the licence fee was a "dinosaur from a pre-digital age, doomed to inevitable extinction" was inaccurate.
• "Around 90% of all television viewing is still live. Well under 2% of households consume only on-demand TV content. And this number is growing only slowly," he said.
• "Funding by licence fee therefore remains practical and sustainable."

Hall described the licence fee as "not a compromise, least-bad option. It underpins the success of the BBC".

Questioned about the statistic that 10% of magistrates' court cases are taken up by non-payment of the licence fee, Hall said: "Of course I'm not content [with that statistic]. "I go back to what I was saying: what better system could there be than a licence fee and if you remove any penalty on it then, you know, more people will say they won't pay … That is the system we've got."

BBC iPlayer Android app now allows downloads for offline viewing 

The Android version of the BBC's iPlayer mobile app can now download TV shows for offline viewing, a year after the feature was added to the iOS version of the application. Android iPlayer users can now store shows on their devices for up to 30 days, watching them for seven days after the first time they start playing the video. The new feature will work on Android devices running the Ice Cream Sandwich and Jelly Bean variants of Google's Android software.

"This is because these devices are able to provide the appropriate level of protection for our programmes," explained senior product manager David Berlin in a blog post. "Our figures show this will mean 70% of Android app users with compatible devices will be able to use this functionality from today – and over the coming months we will be extending this to include new Android devices as well as some older ones." The BBC has faced vocal criticism from Android users since it added video downloads to the iOS iPlayer app in September 2012 – criticism that will have been particularly sensitive given the BBC's public broadcasting remit.

For now, the new video download feature will work on devices including Amazon's 8.9-inch Kindle Fire, Google's Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 tablets and Nexus 4 smartphone, HTC's One, Sony's Xperia Z and Samsung's Galaxy S2, S3 and S4 smartphones and its Galaxy Tab 2 tablet. This shows that you no longer need the internet to watch catch up tv because once it's downloaded your able to watch it offline. So, the idea of Tony Hall extending the tv license is actually effective in terms of keeping control of their audiences. 

2- What impact has there been on the way in which the audience now consume the media products/ texts involved in your case study? How does it differ from what went before? Consider (SHEP)

What impact has there been on the way in which the audience now consume Television? How does it differ from what went before? Consider (SHEP)

Before BBC iplayer, catch up TV and on demand, people had to adapt their everyday lifestyle around the programmes they watched. It also caused a dilemma, in the sense that if a programmes showing on one channel and another on a different channel, people wouldn't be able to fully enjoy themselves. Now, new and digital media allows the audience to enjoy their programmes when they want, wherever they want. New and digital media has opened up a new flexible lifestyle, being able to "time-shift" instead of watching time scheduled programmes. Pluralist believe that people now have the power and are in control of the media, they decide because they now have the power to do so. However Marxist believe we're controlled by hegemonic leader and they still have all the power. 

Social: 

Socially, the audiences don't loose out with time out with their friends, audiences now don't need to worry, they can spent all their time out, knowing that they can catch up they're TV programmes once they do go home. Television has become more flexible and easier for people to socialise with friends and family.

Historically:

This shows and highlights the development of the world, from the beginning where there was only 5 channels, having to watch programmes during the time of the showing to now being able to watch and catch up TV online, when it suits you. Being able to have full control of your own TV. Time-shifting, being able to watch the programme wherever, on the train or in the car.

Economically:  

Economically, because people can now watch their programmes on BBC iplayer, eventually they'll get used to watching they're TV online, no longer needing to pay the license fee. The BBC will loose all control, also the discussion that's been going on about decriminalizing the license fee only provokes people to stop paying at all.