There are few areas where the increasing sophistication and versatility of new technologies is as obvious as it is in the entertainment sector. Thanks to new tech, consumers have more entertainment options than ever before; we have access to more movies, games, and TV series than many of us thought would be possible once upon a time.
While this kind of accessibility makes the current entertainment sphere an exciting one for consumers, it’s impossible to deny the wider impact changes like these are having on the way we engage with media, and how new media is developed in the first place. This article will explore these changes in greater detail.
Streaming Services and Platforms
Netflix has easily been one of the biggest game-changers ever in the entertainment sector. Its streaming model has revolutionized the way we access movies and TV series; now, rather than needing to purchase or rent physical or digital copies or whatever it is we want to watch, we can simply pay for a subscription to access Netflix’s library and stream whatever we want on demand. You can access all kinds of movies on the platform, too; from gambling movies on Netflix, documentaries, sci-fi, thrillers, murder mysteries, and more, it can cater to just about everyone.
Probably the main advantage of platforms like Netflix over the old-fashioned way of accessing movies and TV series – that is, either renting or buying them outright – is that it’s so much more affordable. Gone are the days when we would have to think carefully before purchasing a DVD or VHS; now, we can access hundreds or even thousands of pieces of media at the touch of a button.
And Netflix isn’t the only provider of this service; other movie streaming platforms have cropped up in recent years with their own advantages over Netflix. For instance, MUBI focusses on critically acclaimed arthouse films, whereas HBO and Amazon, while providing similar experiences overall, will often have movies or series in their collections that Netflix doesn’t.
This is arguably one of the main downsides of how streaming platforms have disrupted the entertainment marketplace. It’s common for new films or series to sign a distribution deal with just one of these providers, meaning that, if you have a subscription to the wrong one platform, you simply won’t be able to watch certain new releases (unless you sign up for that platform too, of course).
Curiously, this is generally not the case when it comes to streaming music. Spotify has deftly acquired a monopoly over the music streaming sphere, with pretty much every new and old release being made available on the platform unless the artist themselves refuses to allow this to happen.
What’s more, it’s easy to access shared Spotify accounts that have already been paid for online. This makes it effortless to listen to the best and hottest music from pretty much anywhere in the world, often without you being required to pay a single dime.
VR and Augmented Reality
While it may not be for everyone, it’s impossible to deny that Virtual Reality has been a major disrupter in the entertainment sphere.
More and more games are being released with some form of VR compatibility, or VR being incorporated into the gameplay experience. This absolutely makes for a more immersive way to play video games; not only can we see, hear, and feel the world of the game, but it can surround us, too.
Indeed, virtual entertainment can be considered a genre unto itself; it combines virtual reality with more conventional media and techniques to create an entertainment experience that is truly novel and ground-breaking. While older audiences may be less inclined to pick up a VR headset, it seems fairly inevitable that younger generations will be very receptive to this form of entertainment, given how much more immersive it is.
So, it’s probably fair to say that VR is yet to reach its full potential in terms of its impact on the entertainment sphere. Only time will tell how much of an impact it will likely be able to have; we’ll just have to stay tuned in the meantime.
Digital Distribution Services
Steam is one of the largest and most popular digital distribution platforms in the world today. It essentially functions as a library for video games; with its own store, which is more or less legendary for its generous sales and discounts, Steam has totally transformed the way many of us buy and own video games, forcing its competitors to adopt similar business models to keep up.
At one stage, Steam even launched its own console, the Steam Machine. While the Steam Machine didn’t exactly take off in the way that, say, the Xbox and PlayStation did, it just goes to show the massive success that the platform has attained to even be able to manufacture a console in the first place.
Through its Early Access program, Steam has also shown itself to be a key supporter of indie developers and smaller studios. Without Steam, plenty of classic (in the modern sense) games would never have reached the audience they were able to upon release.
