Exam Question 3

Referencing back to the article and my own research, the impact of the Ofcom 2014 article on media production in the Television sector has majorly had an effect on media production.  A number of devices have replaced the usage of television and this includes tablets, laptops and an increase in mobile phones for children between the ages of 12-15. As the result of the increase on tablets, this has effected the production of television; more content is being made for online purposes, more shows and movies that can be shown on TV is shown online and are viewed on Netflix, amazon prime and illegal sites.  According to the Ofcom 2014 article, there has been a significant increase in access to, ownership of and use of tablet computers of all ages. Another statistic supporting the increase in ownership of tablets states that (34%) of children aged 5-15 now owning tablet computers, up from one in five (19%) in 2013. Tablets seem to be replacing TV and game consoles in the bedroom to, as children can access content and games on this device quicker rather than switching devices. My primary research conducted in a survey form collected and grouped all the answers and it stated that phones were the more popular device than other devices; also phones and tablet are more favoured than TV device. This links to the Uses and Gratification theory as children are expressing new ways to view TV shows. This is also because it is a much private way to watch anything they want without the accompaniment of adults.  Children are more isolated in viewing content on their devices in their bedroom, there is no accompaniment of adults or older siblings; children are not prone to watching over aged films in front of their parents. In addition to the types of social media they consume, YouTube is probably the most used social media to view different kinds of content. As YouTube is a much interacted media, children are likely to spend countless number of hours viewing content of their choice and commenting below.  As summed up in my survey, children are spending more time online than on TV; this is also support and backed up by two secondary sources, the Guardian and BBC. The guardian displays information and quantitative statistics stating that children are spending 3 hours a day online, which has overtaken the TV watching hours(2.1). Furthermore, from the BBC source, 60% of children watch TV via phone, tablet or laptop and this adds to the effect in TV production. The BBC article openly states that Netflix emerged as the most popular choice of viewing films and shows, which is overtaking all the conventional channels.  Arguably TV is targeting at children 3-4 (99%) because at such a small age they tend to enjoy the content on TV but children 12-15 are older to choose what device and content they wish to view. The incidence increases with each age group; accounting for few in the 3-4 age group (1%), around one in 20 5-7 year old (4%), one in seven 8-11 year old (15%), and two in five 12-15 year old (38%).  Moreover, to the impact of a sector, the film sector has been affected due to the rise in consumption through tablets and phones, children tend to wait patiently to see a film on their tablet rather than pay money to watch it at the cinema. Overall, as a whole from the research I have regulated, both my primary and secondary research has supported the fact that the production of TV has been effected and has been replaced with the services of tablets and phones.