Youtube

Youtube is a host site for many different videos, you can find all different types ranging from parts of a film to someone just talking about themselves, the video I’m choosing is what a lot of people on Youtube are posting up, it’s basically clips from the film ‘Happy Feet’ mixed with a song, a lot of people post up these kind of videos.

Unless you were told by a friend to specifically search this up you probably would just find it randomly, you may be searching up Happy Feet if you’re interested in the film or you could be searching the song “Walk It Out” and then come across the video.

The video has been made purely for people to admire, there’s no real institutions involved as I doubt the person who made it is promoting either the song or the film.

There’s no real concepts involved, interactivity may be one as you can interact by commenting on the video and telling the maker of it what you think.

N-Dubz

www.myspace.com/ndubz

If you’re a music artist you can use myspace to create your own music artist page, these are different from the standard myspace pages,. The page that I’m looking at is made by the UK Hip-Hop/RnB act N-Dubz. When you go on the page you’re attention is most likely going to turn to the box in the top right which contains the four songs that are currently featured on the page, below is a list of blog entries published by the artists and just below that is an ‘About N-Dubz section’. Then to the left is a column which has more info about the group, including the members, the official website and their influences. Although there are specific headings on the page, the group doesn’t exactly stick to it, as instead of actually listing their influences, they put up one of their music videos.

Obviously you wouldn’t be visiting this site if you wanted to find out about another artist, you visit it if you’re specifically interested in N-Dubz. You could want to check out there songs, which aren’t available for download, or you may want to find out more about them, or just comment them and let them know that you like them.

The page has a lot to do with marketing N-Dubz, the site really promotes their album/single release dates and the fact they put up songs but make them unavailable for download means you’d want to buy the single, they also have pictures of posters which promote shows which they are going to be performing at.

The media texts relevant are obviously everything to do with N-Dubz, from themselves to the albums/singles they’re releasing, also the blogs they post although at the moment they haven’t used that section yet.

Interactivity and narrowcasting are definitely key concepts, myspace is all about interactivity as you make an account, make friends than interact with them , narrowcasting is shown on the page as not everyone would listen to this music, only certain people.

Vibe magazine is a magazine which focuses mainly on Hip-Hop/RnB acts, it’s target audience is whoever listens to that kind of music, usually ranging between early teens to late to mid twenties, although some older or younger people may still be interested in it. The site itself contains news headlines about music artists/anyone else that’s relevant, a whole section of photos and a section called ‘VBlog’ obviously to do with blogging with the home page displaying all the links to the relevant sections. The site isn’t really replacing anything, it’s mostly adding to what’s in the Vibe magazine, they obviously can’t publish the Vibe magazine on the site or else they wouldn’t make any money off people buying it, instead they offer you a chance to subscribe the magazine so it can get posted to you.

The audiences interested in this would be those interested in what Vibe focuses on which I’ve already said is Hip-Hop/RnB, so people who listen to this music are more likely to visit this site than those who listen to rock artists. There’s a whole list of things these people could be doing with the website, first of all they could just be finding out about their artists, they may want to subscribe to the magazine or they could want to take part in the contests that Vibe have to offer.

The website focuses more on the marketing of the brand than the other institutions, it basically makes you want to subscribe to Vibe magazine, in a way it also involves distribution as you can subscribe to the magazine via the website.

As I’ve said a few times before, Vibe magazine focuses mainly on Hip-Hop/RnB acts, so the media involved would be mostly to do with the music industry e.g. there is currently a news headline and interview about the RnB singer Akon who has recently released an album, although the main focus of the magazine is music, they are also concerned with fashion, as they have a whole section of photos and headlines about events in the fashion industry.

Like most websites I’ve analysed, this one is also a good example of interactivity, there’s just so much packed into the website for the relevant audience to do, it’s interactive as well as informative in the way you can read interviews then comment on them, take part in polls and contests, all of this involves the audience to do more than just read through the website.

Spiderman 3

Spiderman 3 is out on the 4th May in the United Kingdom. When you are directed to the website of Spiderman 3, you’re at first at a page which displays a lot of logos, all relevant to the film, a scroll bar in which you can choose what country/area you’re in and once you’re done looking around, you can click on ‘Enter The Site’.


On the main page you’re brought to the sitemap which makes it a lot easier to navigate around, as every section of the site is shown in a few columns in front of you. You can find out about the main characters in the film and there relationships with each other, you can get info on the movie itself, it’s cast, the soundtrack etc. you can watch videos (trailers/interviews/the making of the film), you can download wallpapers, screensavers and even the trailer for your ipod, you can also play a mini game on the website, plus much more (including a whole section on mobiles in which you can download a Spiderman game and wallpapers straight to your phone). There seems to be a lot more info than you will find on other film websites, probably because of how big the Spiderman franchise is. Those that would view the site would be those interested in the film and from it’s success, the film probably has a wide audience range. Kids may just want to play the game, whilst teenagers and adults might want to download to their ipods or use the blog.

This site is really all about marketing, by giving you all this info i.e. how the film was made, trailers etc. it’s making you want to find out more, there’s also links to the other 2 Spiderman films and if you’ve seen them you’ll most likely want to see the third installment.

Interactivity definitely plays a big part in the site, a lot more than in other film sites, this is due to the fact that there is just so much you can do/find out on the site.

The Morning Vybe

The Morning Vybe is one of Choicefm’s radio shows, it’s on air from 6-9am most days of the week. The layout of the page is like the homepage of the Choicefm website, there are headlines of recent events/competitions in the middle, whilst on the left hand side is a column dedicated to the DJs of the show, you can click ‘Read More’ on any of these to find out more about that individual. For example, by clicking on Lucy Ambache, you see that there’s a few paragraphs on things she wants to say, whilst below that is a little interview. There’s also info on the news broadcasters e.g. Andre Morgan, which has basically the same info as you would find when you click on the DJs.

You’d only look at this page if you were interested in The Morning Vybe Show, it’s basically the same audience that would listen to Choicefm in general. The page offers the same kind of stuff that features on the main Choicefm page, interviews, competitions etc. Although there is a section called ‘The Morning Vybe Blog’ in which you can ‘Catch up with the daily lives of Martin and Lucy’ and also see photos of them doing what they do.

Interactivity is really the only main concept that is shown by this page, narrowcasting may also be a concept.

Choicefm

The main page of the Choicefm website is packed with different headlines, all with a small caption on what the ‘article’ is about and a link saying ‘read more’. The navigation bar at the top makes it easy to find your way around the site, the headings are Home, On Air, Music, Community, Interact, Contact Us, Ax-S and Search. There is a bar just beneath the main one, this has three headings; Listen Online, Schedule and Webcam. By looking at this you can see that listening on the website could be a replacement for listening on the radio, it also has it’s own original qualities as you probably can’t find the schedule anywhere else and you can only check out the webcam section on the site.

Fans of the radio station would be interested in looking at the site, they could be fans of the DJs or of any of the artists that feature on the radio station, on the site they also say their target audience is 15-34 year olds. The site contains news headlines to competitions, there is a lot of information all relevant to the Choicefm website, currently there is a headline about Choicefm’s 17th birthday which will be celebrated on the 19th April 2007. The site offers you a chance to find out more about it in depth, take the Music section for example, you can click on the Choicefm Playlist to find out what songs are currently being played by the radio station. The Interact section features interviews, a chance to chat with other Choicefm listeners through the message board and a section called ‘Ruff Or Buff’ in which you post up a picture of yourself and people vote on whether you’re Ruff or Buff.

As it’s a website for a radio station the most obvious media texts involved are those from the music industry, there are too many to name them all but right now a main headline on the home page is about Robin Thicke who is an up and coming artist.

Interactivity is definitely a key concept within the site, you get a whole different Choicefm experience, especially from the webcam in which you can see what’s going on inside the studio, which you can’t do through a radio. Narrowcasting in also a concept, as only certain people would listen to Choicefm due to the kind of music they play, it’s tagline is ‘Number 1 For Hip-Hop and RnB’, so if you’re into classical or country you won’t be looking at this website.

-Coming Soon-

ChoiceFm

The Morning Vybe

Lost

Lost is one of the programmes available to watch on Sky One, currently it’s on it’s third series. The main page of the official Lost website is kept very simple, the background is a dark picture of the Island with the title ‘Lost’ just about visible near the top of the screen, the 4 main headings are near the bottom left of the screen, they are Explore, Info, Downloads and Media, these are in bold whilst the 3 lesser headings are in the bottom right of the screen and are not in bold, these are Theory Board, Receive Updates and Terms Of Use.

Only fans of Lost would visit this site, this audience could be of either gender, with ages ranging from early teens to mid 30’s. If you only know a bit about the show and you want to find out more, the site offers a synopsis, an episode guide, info on the cast etc. If you already know about the show, the site offers you a chance to discuss the show with other fans on the Theory Board or download wallpapers/screensavers of your favourite character on the show. A video and picture gallery is also available but you’re not able to watch full episodes, only clips. Overall the site offers enough information for you to ‘get to know’ the programme whilst at times giving to the audience e.g. download but in general it’s a simple site probably designed to make you watch the programme as you want to know more i.e. only showing you short clips of episodes.

The site could be seen as en example of narrowcasting, especially on the theory board as this is an audience all will the same specific interest.

Sky One

Sky One is one of the sites that you can be directed to off the main Sky.com site. The main page consists of different links with the left column being the navigation around the site. The headings are Find A Show, Must See, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Competitions, Clips, Forums, Celebrity, Dating, Newsletter Sign Up, Search and Join Sky Digital, so as you can see there is a lot of content being advertised on the site. The main box on the page which the viewers eyes will most likely be directed to first shows the main headlines, which at this time are advertising the 'Simpsons Easter Treasure Hunt’ in which you can win a trip to Hollywood and the new show which will be aired on Sky One called ‘Brainiac’. There aren’t many real replacements by the content except for adverts on TV which show a sneak peek of the next episode and when it will be shown, as you can find that out on the site.

Audiences that will use the site are those who watch the shows on the programme, so they could either be Simpson viewers or fans of Battlestar Galactica. The fact that there is a whole section dedicated to Sci-Fi/Fantasy suggests to me that the majority of people that use the site are fans of that genre, I say the majority because obviously not all of the shows on Sky One are of this genre e.g. 24. By clicking on the show you want to find out about, there is information on the cast, overviews, galleries, clips, podcasts etc. Most of the audience will have the intention of finding out about the shows when looking through the site but may be directed to some of the other content e.g. the competitions. Forums are also available, these give the audience a chance to discuss episodes/programmes with others who share the same interests but may have different views. On the site there is basically everything to do with Sky One whether it’s updates on the shows or news about the actors themselves e.g the celebrity section. One section which stands out to me is the dating section, I didn’t think I would find this on the Sky One site, I think this may be an example of democratisation as it appeals to other people who may be ‘seeking’ someone.

Interactivity is a main concept in the Sky One site, as you can find out the basic information of the content on the site but it’s presented in different ways e.g. podcasts in the Lost section.

Sky

As Sky is a big institution, it’s website obviously has a lot of content for it’s consumers. The site doesn’t just promote it’s TV services, it also promotes it’s internet services (Sky Broadband) and a service called Sky Anytime in which you can stay up to date with news/sports etc. via your mobile phone or PC. The site is also an online shop in which you are able to buy Sky+Boxes, Sky Broadband, sign up for Sky HD and Sky Anytime, so it replaces the use of your phone for purchasing these products/services.

The site is split into sections: Home, My Sky, Products and Services, Sky Shop, TV Guide and Customer Support. A wide range of audiences are able to use this site due to the large amount of content being advertised. There are TV listings so a child is able to check what’s on The Disney Channel or an adult is able to check what’s on Sky Movies later that night. Adults may also just want to purchase Sky Products, or expand on their Sky Products if they have some already.

The site is a good example of democratisation and also interactivity in ways. It offers information to find out and products to purchase, it doesn’t offer a chance to consume the texts i.e. watch the programmes, although it does advertise links to other sites which enable you to do that e.g. Sky Sports or Sky One which is the site I will be analysing next.