Digital Technology

What is the relationship between digital television technology, the audience and the owners of digital media enterprises? What will the future be like in a constantly changing digital environment?

At the moment digital television is merely a way of transmitting more channels. According to Feldman (1997, p.88) the future of the original information superhighway vision is being radically modified by the economic realities of the consumer market place. The customer, he says, is calling the tune.

Technologies do not exist and be successful by themselves. What is the point of building the superhighway if there is no one to drive on it?

To some extent the wishes of the customers are the lifeblood of all commercial activities.

The conglomerates rely on economic principles and market forces. The markets are the audiences.

The companies can make plans concerning the future of digital television but what makes the plans work are the viewers who decide to use the products the companies create.

The companies have to make their decision on how to spend their money and their decisions determine what the future of the digital television will be like.

If they are clever they will invest in the forms of digital television that have proven or are the most likely to be successful.

The technology is very promising and can be developed further and further, but the future of digital television is not a technological matter, it is a social one. The user must be ready to adopt the services offered.

This may take a long time because technological change without social change is impossible (Feldman, 1997).

The viewers are the ones who need to be ready to pay for their media use before we can step into the digital age.

The major media companies seem to be determining the progress both at a national and international level, with governments and regulators forced into playing a reactive role (Steemers, 1999).

There is a danger that the companies run by economic gains will overrule everything else and this might threaten the creative freedom of programme makers.

However, digital television companies with their view-on-demand and pay-per-view services expect the audiences to choose what they want to watch.

Therefore, in the end, it all comes down to consumer response. They may choose to adopt digital television as they have adopted the computer, or they may choose not to. It is their choice.

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