issues institutions audiences

Digitality
New way of encoding information in a series of either noughts or ones (binary) huge amounts of information can be dealt with in these tiny pieces of code.

Interactivity
New ways of streaming compressed information:
-air e.g. satellites
-phone cables
-ISDN cables e.g. broadband
-cable cable e.g. cable satellite systems
by having the information compressed we can transport more pieces of information as it doesn’t take up so much room when being sent.
Because its interactive, it means you can interact with it, interact with other, get it to respond and reply to it. It means you can upload as well as download

Hypertextuality
Media is no longer linear like on a VHS (A-B-C pathway), its more liquid so the viewer can choose what they would like to do, for example on a DVD (Viewer can choose own pathway) and on an MP3 where a viewer can choose to shuffle songs rather than listen to the whole album in order.
Makes a difference for the people who produce the texts

Dispersal
How information can be and is shared and communicated. To do with market share, size and take-up (who's using it.). how much access users have and how producers target users and maximise their markets. couple with digitality creates huge market for producers

Virtuality
Already-discussed ideas linking with reality and representation. Verisimilitude, like iconography, is how real something is. cartoons are representational. some virtual worlds also representational. what is real? mimicking and representation of the world. who, why and how?

Convergence
New technologies merging into one, like companies. MP3's showing photos. where will it go next and will people use it? Think about size: both of data and hardware, new possibilities

Audience
How does the audience use the technology? Do they actually use it? has it changed the way they use it? did they use it before and has it changed the way they use it if it has been updated? has the technology been led by consumer demand or by the industry? have the people who've made it made us think that we want it? who actually has access to these things? who is disenfrancised?


Regulation and control
Is there any control over the technology's use? who's doing the controlling and should it be there in the first place? what's done about copyright issues? What are the implications of control and people subverting it? is it realistically possible to have this control? what impact of this on the producers? what potential impact is there for the government?

Ownership
who owns the technology and does it make a difference? how much money they have, use the market, compete with one another and how they use their money and their brand to sell various things: games console manufacturing is a good example of this.