Media Industry

The years have rather flown by when cassettes and music videos dominated the entertainment industry. It was the pilot video that aired on August 1, 1981 of “Video Killed the Radio Star” by The Buggles that sparked an evolution within music. The launch of music videos on MTV became a success and allowed artists to be exposed to the vast majority. Millions were now seeing the actual artists and could put the music with a face or at least a concept of some sort. MTV had become a success and as the years went by, more and more artists were producing videos and concerts to be aired on the network. The entertainment industry has nicknamed the young adults as "MTV babies" because of MTV's major affect on the production of TV programs, but now MTV is seeing a change among its media form.

There has been drastic changes among MTV and many other companies in the media industry because of the rapid increase in digital media. Companies are starting to revamp their departments to accommodate to the change. Television for instance has become difficult to advertise on with TIVO and now many viewers can watch the show online, avoiding majority of the commercials. Marketing has been gravitating towards online and though it there are still commercials on television, the average person spends more time on a computer then in front of a television. Technology is developing and many positions if not all require the use of a computer in some sort or another. This leads to Internet surfing and to search engines that advertise.

I knew online marketing was growing and becoming increasingly popular, but having interviewed four people from various marketing departments I can see how it is really growing at a fast rate. Almost every company is trying to increase staffing among their Internet department to keep up with the demand and this may lead to less focus on other marketing forms. Having talked with an executive Assistant at MTV, I was able to understand how much of an effect the increase in digital media had on the company. The Viacom company had to lay off 250 people from various channels in order to expand their online department. The lay off wiped out several channels and demonstrated the growth and change companies are needing to make. I also had the chance to talk to a Global manager at Unilever, and I was able to see how the company was trying new aspects of marketing such as the "develop your own commercial" that broadcasts online. It is a way to reach more people at various times.

My career interest has not changed, but I know now that I would like to pursue online marketing or at least gain some digital media experience because it will come in handy. It is a growing aspect that needs strong computer literate people and I am trying to gain the skills as much as possible.