LO1 Unit 1 Task 4 - Advertising and Distribution of "The Avatar" Script and Video

Script-

Welcome back, for our task 4 of unit 1 in education Vlogs, todays Vlog is about how 'The Avatar' was distributed and marketed (Advertised).

Let’s start off with some information and theories you will need to know before you watch my Vlog the first is of a theory that a British sociologist and media theorist known as David Gauntlett (2002) discussed the rise of Web 2.0, he said that Web 2.0 is the change of the internet being a static one way form of communication to a two way interactive medium and the second is that technological convergence is when two technologies come together to provide new service for the user.

Now let’s go on to the ways in which the term distribution is defined in media.

There are two ways in which distribution is defined in media the first is how the product reaches the audience and the second is the way in which the product is distributed and promoted.

Firstly there are two ways in which a media product is distributed, the first is analogue which is the old methods which are known as traditional and the second is digital which is the new method of distribution.

The Avatar can be viewed in two methods which are known as analogue (The old methods (which are becoming outdated) and digital (The new methods). 

The Avatar can be viewed in both digital and analogue methods in several different ways for example, for the traditional methods; ‘The Avatar’ could be viewed when it was showing at the cinema. But now you can view it with options varying from the immersive experience of IMAX to 3D, or just a standard digital cinema viewing which is a new method. There are several digital methods ‘The Avatar’ can be viewed, for example it can be streamed through several methods such as, from Netflix, Sky movies, Virgin Media, All using On Demand services/ capabilities. It can also be watched through the use of the internet which is also known as Web 2.0, The Avatar can be Streamed and downloaded off websites like Pirate bay, Watchseries.eu, Watchseries.to, Afdah, Put locker and many more. However the majority of these websites have been blocked by most broadband providers because of the Digital Economy Act of 2014.But even with this act in place the older methods of watching television and films are becoming outdated as the digital advancement of such services like web 2.0 in recent years are beyond the viewing experience of the cinema whether or not they are IMAX or a physical copy of the film, as digital technologies are more available than ever before, Especially since the digital advancement allows you to watch your favourite films and series such as ‘The Avatar’ on devices from smart TVs, tablets, smart phones and many more.

Now  ill start of will explaining the terminology you will need to know for this section of the Vlog, let’s start off with the definition of old media, old media is the traditional methods of marketing and advertising such as billboards and posters, and new media can’t exactly be defined as it is changing daily, but it is typically recognised as using the internet or a form of technology such as websites, multimedia through the internet i.e social media websites and much more.

The Avatar was marketed/ and or advertised in a variety of different methods that fall in too both old and new methods of media to prepare for the film’s release in the UK on December the 10^th 2009 and December the 11^th 2009 in the US. It made around $2.7 billion dollar box office and another $400 million dollars which is about £266 million pound on domestic sales such as DvD, digital download and Blu-ray.

One of the ways it was advertised and marketed was through panels and interviews with the production crew at several events like the 2009 San Diego comic-con event on July the 23^rd to promote the film by showing 25 minutes of the footage from the film which would be considered a type of old media and new media as they have had interviews before the rise of web 2.0 but because of the rise of web 2.0 the interviews and footage can be found on any device with internet connection. 

The films was also promoted using trailers and teasers with extended versions being released later to keep the hype up for the upcoming release, other Television series like ‘Bones’ heavily promoted the film as this series rights are owned by the same company (20^th Century Fox) as ‘The Avatar’  and as the trailers and television series in which it was promoted is available just about anywhere with internet connection this is again a form of new media and how the rise of web 2.0 affects advertisement. ‘The Avatar also uses old media methods such as using the magazine known as the Empire to promote the film by giving them exclusive images however the rise of web 2.0 would again mean the images are available on the internet through several methods.

Thanks for watching.