Hi everyone,
I hope that you enjoyed the session on TVIII this week. Some of the key terms to consider in relation to this historical era are issues surrounding branding and vertical and horizontal integration. Use this space to engage with these terms and think about how relevant you think they are to the TVIII era. For example, in the lecture we looked at the case of ITV1 and its various attempts at branding strategies. How, then, are these ideas relatable to other channels within the UK? At the same time, what do you understand by the terms 'horizontal integration' and 'vertical integration'? How are these demonstratable in relation the contemporary television industry and/or explorable through a programme such as True Blood?
7 comments:
The TVIII era ranges from the 1990’s to present day. A number of changes had taken place since the TVII period, the main dominant change being that there were now digital distribution methods meaning that there were more channels available for all. Though this change specific target niches could be aimed at and accommodated for, therefore specific channels weren’t now just producing programmes for everyone: they were comprised to engage a target audience.
Along with this was the emergence of branding. This is highly relevant to the TVIII period, as due to the crowded marketplace that’s now suddenly available, specific brands now need to make their viewers feel loyalty towards their channel in order to keep people engaged.
We can see some of these branding strategies used clearly on our televisions daily, ITV1 for example have achieved this through a few different means. Firstly through the use of idents: miniature adverts that are played before a programme. The words “The brighter side” are used to present core brand values, the use of bright light in all the idents are done to create an identity for the brand which the audience are brought into. It’s attempting to show the audience that this brand is better than the others, by watching it you’re stepping into “The brighter side”. Also specific celebrities or stars can be contractually assigned to a channel. ITV1 for example use Ant and Dec when promoting ITV1 HD “The brighter side just got brighter”.
Another UK channel which also uses these means of branding is E4. E4 use what they call “E-Stings”, these are short, quirky and humorous clips which have been produced by viewers at home and are usually no more than 15 seconds long. Iconic noises are used along with the use of purple which is recognisable with the brand. Without this the brand may not stand out from the crowded marketplace.
The emergence of cross media conglomerates is also an important characteristic of TVIII. This is through vertical and horizontal integration with other media interests. Vertical integration is where a company owns every avenue for airing and producing, therefore the company has control. For example it could own a music company and a marketing company which would increase their power in the marketplace. Horizontal integration is where you comprise a niche market through the companies you own. You buy out people who produce so you then own the majority.
That links with a shift in commodity relation: a major change in TVIII is audiences buying into companies. HBO introduced the first-order commodity relation. This is programming free of commercial breaks, the company doesn’t rely on advertising as it is funded by its audience; giving HBO a greater creative freedom, this is seen in programmes such as True Blood, where there is violence, sex and swearing. This can be done as it’s not subject to regulation. Linking with its unique branding values: “it’s not TV, it’s HBO”. Showing how Television has changed so dramatically over the years.
Joanne Webb
As I understand it, TVIII began in the 1990’s and continues to this day. It is an era of reformed marketing techniques, vertical and horizontal integration and the ever growing success of subscription services such as HBO.
The advertising techniques appear to have remained similar, if not the same, as in the TVI era. Air time is still being sold to advertisers and large amounts of profit being generated from such techniques. Although we have seen a slight reduction in the number of channels we see this on. For example the BBC seems to be the exception to this rule due to it being primarily funded by the public and therefore not having to rely of advertisement revenue.
In this TVIII era the competition for viewers is the most vigorous it has ever been. This is mainly due to the increase in channels and choice, leading networks to brand themselves in order to be distinguished from the crowd. We have seen this with various channels, ITV has attempted to brand themselves as the place to go for drama premiers and soaps with the likes of Emmerdale and Coronation Street. They want the public to see them as the family choice. Another example would be E4 who have branded themselves as the place for American comedies and young person’s drama series such as Skins and Beaver Falls.
When we talk about vertical and horizontal integration I instantly think of HBO. With shows like True Blood and The Sopranos, HBO would produce the series and Time Warner, who own HBO, would distribute it which is an example of vertical Integration. HBO can also be used as an example of horizontal integration as they produce and release the soundtracks to their shows, merchandise, DVDs and there is even a True Blood drink available in America. They do not simply produce the shows and air them; they use multiple platforms to gain as much profit as possible.
During the mid-1990’s TV went under a series of changes that which would come to be known as the TVIII era. At the core of these changes was the advancement of technology with developments such as: cross media ownership and the importance of branding.
During the emergence of TV3 the industry changed from being vertically integrated i.e. channels owning every aspect of production to a horizontal integrated model, where media companies would focus on buying out competitors. This can be shown with the rise of AOL Time Warner in 2000. The importance of horizontal integration to the TV3 era is that companies were being bought up and became part of giant media conglomerates which often were spread out across multiple media platforms.
Horizontal Integration allows companies to expand their brand or show across multiple platforms allowing for merchandising opportunities. This can be seen with the hit HBO show ‘True Blood’ which has high ratings but also has extensive merchandise which broadens out to T-shirts, books, soundtracks and alcohol based on the drink, characters drink in the TV show itself. In other words media consolidation (the concentration of ownership) allows the giant media companies like Time Warner to allow their brands to develop across their own equities.
TV3 presents a much more competitive market due to the sheer size of channels available to audiences. One of the key ways to differentiate your channel is to brand yourself, helping your channel stand out in an overcrowded market. In other words channels aim to seek your loyalty by branding themselves thus having a dedicated audience. In the UK this is most obvious with ITV.
ITV spent a lot of money on advertising campaign branding itself with the slogan ‘The brighter side’ with a focus on light and bright colours, suggesting happiness. One of the TV spots used children suggesting a family friendly channel. ITV attempts to make an emotional connection to its brand which leads to loyalty.
ITV also promotes it’s brand by focusing on ‘ITV1 Drama Premiers’ and reoccurring stars familiar with its audience such as Ant & Dec who host a variety of ITV productions and were the focus of an ITV advert for a newly launched ITV HD channel. All of this helps audiences to get what they expect and in turn remain loyal to the brand/channel.
Another channel that is branded heavily is E4. E4 is a channel which is aimed primarily at teenagers this can be seen with its strong programming focus on popular hit TV teen dramas like One Tree Hill, Glee and 90210 also British teen dramas such as Skins and Misfits. E4 marketing presents itself as a quirky modern channel, with a focus on being able to catch up on episodes online something relatable to teenage audiences.
- Reuben Gasser
The TVIII era began in the 90's and is still continuing now. The television industry came under many of changes. Some of these changes include the advances in technology, digital distribution methods and the importance of branding.
The rise in digital distribution methods made it easily accessible for viewers to watch television on the internet or on DVD, for example. There was also an improvement in technology which introduced 'Freeview' and 'Sky TV' which introduces more channels for television viewers giving the viewers a wider range of programmes and appealing to more niche markets. Therefore there was more competition for the main networks to compete against.
The television industry changed from being vertically integrated to horizontally integrated. This means that channels own the right of production, where media companies would focus on buying out competitors. Horizontal integration is important as companies became part of media conglomerates. Horizontal integration also allows companies to expand their brand through advertising and merchandise. For example, the HBO show 'True Blood' released T-shirts, books and even a drink named after the television show itself.
TVIII focuses heavily on branding to attract audiences and to stand out to separate themselves from other television channels. ITV for example, use the slogan 'the brighter side' and the advert features beams of light, suggesting happiness if you watch a programme on ITV. ITV also focus on promoting their TV Dramas by advertising them. ITV tend to feature celebrities related to ITV. such as Ant and Dec to feature in their advertisements and tend to focus on family audiences. Other channels that are heavily branded are Channel 4 and E4, more specifically E4, targeting niche markets such as teenagers. E4 focus on British Drama's that teenagers can relate to, broadcasting shows such as Skins. In contrast, they also broadcast quirky US shows such as Glee.
Callum Muir
Characteristics of TVIII
In the beginning I want to point out that the history of television is divided in three periods: TV I, TV II and TV III. Basically, the three eras differ in terms of distribution or availability of content, which of course, have a major impact on economic and social factors. The television eras are not mutually exclusive, as the periods overlap each other and continue to exist even after the start of a new era.
In the following lines I want to mention the main characteristics of TV III.
-The end of the distribution bottleneck due to new digital distribution technologies (eg. digital TV, the internet, etc.), lowering entry barriers, thus allowing new entrants and more competition;
-The shift in the TV value chain from conduit to content;
-The market deregulation. New elements become excuses to implement rules that were not allowed in the past. Looser rules, new opportunities;
-The horizontal consolidation of companies giving birth to giant media conglomerates;
-The so-called convergence, but not from the technological point of view, but from Jenkin’s perception of it as a cultural shift, where viewers connect information from dispersed sources and share their findings and experiences with each other. Convergence happens within the brain.
There are three major changes in the era of TVIII that make branding particularly valuable: the escalation of media consolidation with the emergence of large media conglomerates; the shift towards first-order commodity relations(where viewers pay directly for subscription or pay-per-view services); and an increase in the number of sites through which television can be distributed. For a media conglomerate branding can be used to link together or differentiate the products/services produced by the range of companies owned. Branding can also reduce the financial risks of developing new products by exploiting existing relationships between consumers and established brands (Rogers et al. 2002).
However, in the era of TVIII, branding is not simply a feature of television networks. The dominant practice of co-producing means that one programme could potentially be understood as part of the brand equity of a range of different companies.
By:11012698 (Bogdan Stefan Driu)
Student number 11013796
The TVII era is often referred to as the era of plenty. There were not only plenty of different channels but also plenty of significant changes in the industry, such as digital distribution methods and cross media ownership. With new channels being created, the competition for viewers was increasing. During the TVIII era branding became more and more important. With multiple different channels and programs fighting for viewers, being recognized became crucially important. Channels attempted to appeal to the emotional side of viewers and gain more loyal viewers. Therefore the image of a channel gained importance. Channels were using specific stars in their programs and advertisement and used positive associations in their campaigns. Another main feature of TVIII is the emergence of cross media conglomerates. The increasing amount of channels and broadcasting companies embraced the saying “if you can’t beat them, join them”. Furthermore, bigger companies meant more resources to produce quality television.
Advertizing was a big part of TVIII as more advertizing often meant more visibility and therefore more viewers for a network, a channel or a TV show. On the other hand, advertisers only chose certain types of programs to be associated with, and sometimes this lead to blander programming. As branding, standing out from the crowd and niche audiences became more common, some channels decided to offer viewers new kinds of shows, at a price. One of the best examples of this is USA’s Home Box Office, HBO. HBO offered programs free of commercials and advertisers. Without advertisers to be pleased, HBO was able to produce shows unlike anything seen on television before, appealing to niche audiences especially. HBO’s famous quote is “it’s not TV, it’s HBO”, which states for different it was from “regular” TV programming. Broadcasting companies like HBO had more independence, creative freedom and a possibility to take bigger chances than channels which were under advertiser pressure. Series like True Blood are a good definition of this kind of HBO programming, with a lot of swearing, sex and blood.
335 words
The TVIII era begins from the mid-1990’s and continues to this day. There are many changes when comparing to previous TVII era. For example digital distribution methods developed and branding was founded in the beginning of the TVIII.
Digital distribution methods increased the range of the channels. And due to this, channels had to start to compete for viewers. Channels had to choose audiences to whom they tried to sell the programs. They also needed to create advertising campaigns that were enough tempting that they could get more viewers.
In the same time branding of the channels came more common. New series were promoted widely and visibly. The most popular series were often advertising the whole channel, for example the program “24”. The campaigns were massive and those commercials were shown often. Also using the well-known television stars as the head of the channel was an effective way to create unforgettable commercials, such as ITV1’s Ant and Dec.
One of the TVIII era’s the most successful stories is HBO or Home Box Office. HBO was founded already in 1970’s in US but in 1990’s its popularity increased fast when it started to broadcast a program called The Sopranos. And after that HBO has produced many other big series, such as Six Feet Under, Sex and the City, Entourage and True Blood.
Vertical and horizontal integration can be seen on HBO’s business. HBO is a premium cable network so they do not have commercial breaks but viewers have to pay for watching the channel. This is why many people just buy the series when they are published on DVD’s. HBO also makes money by selling the products in the name of popular series. But HBO is free to broadcast programs without censorship because it does not have to care about commercial partners, as many other channels do. Therefore HBO can show for example violent programs, such as a hit program called True Blood.
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