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'The new creative culture'_Matt Hardisty.
Printable version
Throughout the '60s, '70s and '80s television
was the vehicle of choice as a means of communication to given target audiences,
however its expense in production and cost of media meant that the barriers
to entry for the small creative and media enterprise were too high. More innovative
methods were therefore sought, in the form of print-based fanzines, flyers
and community based broadcasting. The introduction of the Internet with its
falling costs and egalitarian access, arguably emerging as an alternative
medium for both communication and marketing, means that for the first time
the small player is able to compete on a level playing field with the corporates.
Up until recently, the web was too primitive to create powerful images and evoke strong emotions, therefore mitigating its role within the marketing tool box of any size enterprise - other than that is, supplying purely textual information. The introduction of Macromedia's 'Shockwave' (technology for full motion video on the Internet) and Real Network's 'Real Audio' and 'Real Video' products (facilitating home to radio broadcasts and archival of video clips), however are meaning that the Internet can at last become 'the hammer' which every small creative and media enterprise has longed for. At the same time, the Internet is dramatically altering the relationship that consumers have with brands. For example, web strategy now focuses on building customer relationships and developing customer 'involvement', with the ensuing 'technological sculpting' being driven by the targeted audience. The consumer is king in the digital age, gaining control over every aspect of the value creation experience, they must now be given a valid reason for returning to a given site and they hold the mantle to 'side-step' traditional distribution networks. Many sites however, are one hit wonders and the aim must be to make the site a fundamental part of people's web lifestyle. Within the net, the smallest brand in the world can have the same presence as the biggest, so companies will have to listen to consumers more in order to compete.
Underpinning these technological developments, under the Labour government's promotion of 'Cool Britannia' and an 'Entrepreneurial Economy' (UK), the creative and media industries have been identified as the country's lifeblood to a brighter future. The government has prided itself on being the innovative promoter of British creativity, especially those utilsing the tools of multimedia technologies. As a result, more people than ever before are being affected by the same new and challenging atmosphere of creativity. This has resulted in an unprecedented emergence of creative products entering the mainstream and an 'aspirational' culture amongst many 18-34 year olds, wanting to emulate enterprise and forge 'progressively' their own ideas for critical interpretation. In short, a new frame of mind has been presented by these technologies, not only one of staying attitudinally younger for longer - but a DIY ethos that anyone can become a publisher/content producer (and make money).
This in turn has given rise to what reports have identified as 'The Independents'. Those young people off in search of a non-corporate lifestyle orientated working future, largely involved in the production of creative works from music, art, photography and film. They have since formed ecological microcosms in regional centres such as Glasgow's Jamaica Street and London's Shoreditch (Hoxton Square) and Notting Hill (Golbourne Road) areas. For the first time, the mid-twenty-somethings clad in trainers and Duffer St. George clothing are discussing business plans and marketing strategies, with the purpose of business refined through the Internet as play.