“For me convergence is no longer about technology but about a converged media experience for the user, so for example when I watch the world cup or eurovision, I’m also tweeting, I might be using tweet deck on an iPad and that for me is all part of the same media experience even though it’s technologically on different platforms.”

“[The TSB] should focus on what convergence means for the user’s experience and less on the specific technology”

He then outlined three major challenges facing a broadcaster or publisher of content in convergence culture, quoting a discussion he’d had with Anthony Soohoo, Senior VP and General Manager for the Entertainment and Lifestyle Division at CBS Interactive:

“As a broadcaster there are three things [Soohoo] worries about when he thinks about his products working on different platforms and being consumed by the user in different ways.

“One is who is controlling the transaction model: is it iTunes controlling that or is it CBS or is it another third party; who is making money out of the content in the converged user experience, how much of it do you own and how much of it do other people own? The converged user experience may involve watching online,tweeting, using Facebook at the same time. Who owns which bits of that experience? So the money is one thing.”

“The second thing is the social graph. If users are having that converged experience with a other people who they already have relationships with, who’s mixing those relationships together? Is it Facebook? Is it Twitter? What are the issues involved if it’s not you doing that – which is probably isn’t?

“The third thing is the whole question of rights: other people being part of the media experience which they don’t have the rights to. Twitter is now the place where all the conversations go on about media brands but Twitter obviously has no licensing arrangements with them. Is that a problem? a good thing? A bad thing? Where’s the fat going to be for that?”

“So it’s about monetisation, it’s about the transaction layer – the social graph layer – and also about rights.”

We are running the second round of events for our Future of Digital Content project which will include Digital Lounges in London, Newcastle and Sheffield.

Speakers include Dave Rowan, editor of Wired magazine, Ewan McIntosh, a leading expert in digital media and former digital commissioner with Channel 4’s 4iP project, technology broadcaster and writer Bill Thompson and the BBC’s Nick Gallon, the lead for TV Platforms the team developing Canvas.

We also have an update from Chinwag at the London event and North East Movies will be showing some of the best movies that have been uploaded to their web site by local movie makers.

For details of the dates, times locations and speakers at the different venues visit our events calendar.

You can register for all the event by clicking on the links below

London Digital Lounge

Newcastle Digital Lounge

Sheffield Digital Lounge

These are a result of a series of activities exclusive to the Creative Industries KTN, including online surveys, interviews with leading industry experts and a number of workshops.

Both reports make great reading and have some fascinating insights and ideas into both of the topics covered.

They are available for free on our web site and are a must read for people in the creative industries and technology community. The reports give details of the methodology as well as the survey findings and material from the interviews.

The next stage is to develop a series of scenarios for the future of the creative industries and what projects, actions or funding needs to be put in place in order to achieve these for the long term benefit of creative businesses.

People can still get involved through the interactive wikis for these projects and we will publishing further updates and reports on our web site.

Have a look at them and post a comment.

He looked at the smart phone predicting this will be bigger and better than the internet. Our phones are always with us and with GPS tracking, it tells us where we are and where friends are are and will tell advertisers where we all are, so they can highly target their marketing at us.

Data storage is coming down in cost. The commercial world wants that data and will make us an offer to have some of it. Look at Tesco – will give us money off when we buy things so they can market and up-sell to us. This is already happening. All moving towards individual, highly targeted, advertising campaigns; specifically at the point we are ready to spend / purchase. Very Minority Report.

AN other fascinating area is Microsoft Project Natal developed by Lionhead. Their screen character, Milo, recognises humans, tone of voice, expressions, emotions, through Artificial Intelligence – check out the video on YouTube.

Also interesting is looking at Motive’s brain and computer interactions – ie controlling wheelchairs with blinks and smiles so the system picks up the signals in the brain, recognises the instruction and responds moving the wheelchair forward , left and right.

These are all examples of the future that is already here. Next steps – it’s coming down in price, more available to those who are connected and will lead change in how people interact with stories, screens, text and experiences.

What hasn’t changed? Abraham Massaro’s human needs pyramid… this still stands true from food, warmth our basic needs up through to the pinnacle of being able to fulfil ones potential in life. Look at these values and how best your business, content, model can deliver to those needs.

There are new business models to find other ways to make money off the back of the main offering. For example we see, social video games are soaring in popularity – these are free but the virtual items also sold via micropayments are where the real sales opportunity lies.

We all need to creatively find new methods of engagement with our target audiences. The key is to adapt or die, everyday. Offer a service, think of the human factor, be entertaining and different to get your message across.

In publishing there will be lots of change. Conde Nast and Hurst waiting for other devices to replace paper. The new screen based publication is just the start – it will have colour or packages to download – aim to reach more people in new creative ways. As an editor David is the curator of content that’s probably already out there so the challenge is how does it get repackaged for the audience and for the new devices that are around the corner?

Rather than ask what’s going to change in the next 5-10years? That is the wrong question. Think what’s not going to change!? How can you adapt and adopt and reach your audience… use new ways. Probably not easy for the giant corporations but if you have a niche interest you have more opportunity to self publish, finding your new audiences online. There will be more choice.
Whatever you do now think of it as version 1; the first iteration. Then you know you’ll be listening and learning and be ready to adapt for the next version.

Adrian Woolard, head of innovation culture for BBC Research and Innovation spoke about the role of Digital City as a hub at our Future of Digital Content workshop in Manchester this week.

Alongside the importance of drawing in other businesses and organisations to ensure there is a real spark of innovation and networking that will lead to business success, Adrian also stressed that the development must be seen as somewhere that will serve and benefit the whole of the north of England.

For his part he is already forging relations with digital businesses in Yorkshire and drawing in BBC colleagues in the north east. He wants to make this a strong network involving people from all parts of the north.

For people involved in creative businesses and digital technology and businesses the idea of ignoring geography should be part of their DNA. If you are a digital ad agency or a music producer the people who work on your projects may be in various locations around the country, or indeed around the world. And it’s highly likely that your product will be seen or heard nationwide or indeed globally.

However, we can still be a very parochial nation. When the BBC was looking at where to locate it’s northern centre there was a lot of competition between Salford and Manchester, and that’s before you factor in the views of people in Leeds, Newcastle, Liverpool about where the BBC should have put down routes.

But media City offers a great opportunity to create a world-class centre that will link into businesses and research facilities across the north giving a boost to many areas.

The KTN workshop attracted people from well outside the Manchester city boundaries. The creative industries can signpost the way forward by creating a successful hub that benefits the region through investment and jobs.