Emma - Essay (Mock)

To what extent does digital distribution affect the marketing and consumption of media products in the media area you have studied?

Digital Distribution is a factor contributing towards marketing and consumption of music through online sites such as Youtube for example. Youtube is used as a promoter for many artists, both Major and Indie labels use it due to it is a fast way to promote due to likes, views and fan videos. Digital Distribution is now a big part of Music Institutions due to free marketing, consumption by the audience (either Niche or Mainstream).
Nowadays, Artists have to connect with their fans online  through sites such as Twitter, Facebook or risk not selling music, gigs, concerts, merchandise ect. Music is now available online, however this isn't necessarily a good thing due to piracy. Fans and audiences can now consume music for free, which creates problems in the music industry.
However, Major institutions that are conglomerates such as Sony for example use Synergy as a means of promotion of their music and artists. Constructing their music in games is a new advance for music institutions due to their audience can interact with it (immersion) e.g Guitar Hero. So therefore, digital distribution does not affect music institutions entirely due to synergy through using Games is a way that people can find out about new music. Major labels are more inclined to use Synergy, in comparison to Indie Labels due to they are conglomerates and therefore own more media institutions, however it is possible for indie labels to create synergy through other media products, like Indie films for example.

DIY artists such as Beck, use digital distribution and technologies to his advantage due to free promotion using social networking sites such as Twitter, Myspace, Facebook ect. This also allows him to create a niche audience, and fan community that he can interact with online to maintain a relationship with the fans (connect or die). Beck is an example of how PDE has been blended due to the impact of the internet. Digital distribution has entitled Beck as a unique artist to make his product available for the musically talented, in return of exchanging their fan videos online in return. This has entitled him to have a niche audience, in comparison to X Factors mainstream audiences. He produces his music in the form of sheet music. This therefore entitles fans to buy it and create their own interpretations of what they think the music should sound like. This is how Beck exchanges his music. He is an example of a ‘blender’. By this, it means that Beck has created Production, Distribution and Exchange himself.

 Beck is a music revolution due to his example of how he created his success without the input of a record company and allowed his niche audience to create an image for him. In order for his fans to consume his music; they have to produce it. Beck is an example of an artist who respects musically talented and appreciate fans (niche audience). His success was created by, and is now dependant on the internet. Due to his image, fans and music is online due to the impact of digital distribution. His products are also purchasable online on his website.
However, Beck's image is not impacted by Visualisation which is definite contrast to artists like Psy, and the X-factor. His fans create the music and their own music videos for him, in which he has no input whatsoever. Psy was a world-wide sensation on Youtube due to his comic music video, and dance routine that gained him recognition instead of the music. This is an example of an artist devaluing music due to the marketing and consumption available on the internet. Youtube is world-wide, and now Psy has gained world-wide recognition for comic dance moves with no musical talent. The internet has allowed artist like Psy to dominate the music.

Digital distribution has highly impacted consumerism and marketing of music due to the internet. The internet has created free marketing and advertising of artists. Beck's audience had created Beck's image online.