Week 5 - Let's plays and prosumers

It is with great interest that I come to reflect on the rise of the digital “prosumer” for this week’s blog.  This term is generally attributed to Alvin Toffler (cited in Ritzer & Jurgenson, 2010) and refers to a trend in which people have transitioned from being consumers to both producers and consumers of content. Ritzer & Jurgenson (2010) reflect on the rise of this trend, particularly as it relates to the Internet, or more specifically Web 2.0 .  This relates more specifically to my interests through the websites Youtube and Twitch TV, both of which have kick-started the careers of many prominent Internet figures known as Youtubers or Streamers. These sites demonstrate the popular trend of becoming a digital prosumer. 

Source: Google Images

This phenomenon had led to a strong desire for people to become Internet personalities, given there are no restrictions on who can upload to youtube, one simply needs to register an account. A common way of getting started on these sites -particularly within the gaming community - is to post or stream ‘let’s play’ videos of popular video games. This is a popular strategy because the majority of these games have an established audience.  For example, on their ‘about’ page,  Twitch TV boasts that they have “more than 38 million visitors per month” (Justin.tv inc, 2013).

Source: Google Images

However, there are some problems inherent to this format, including piracy and copyright, which I discussed in last week’s blog. While ‘let’s play’ videos have become popular practice online, the publishers and creators of the games being played have become increasingly concerned with the use of their content.  Some publishers such as Nintendo and Sega have even gone to such lengths as to ban accounts of users that publish footage of their games. Youtube personalities such as Totalbiscuit have subsequently removed and boycotted any further content for those publishers, which denies them potential free advertising to a large audience.

I believe that part of the issue is that these publishers are failing to adapt to a rapidly advancing market. Piracy and copyright are ambiguous issues and debate continues to surround them. Is it fair for ‘let’s players’ to profit from somebody else’s work? I would argue that it certainly has very little negative impact on product sales, and Twitch has built an entire business around just this practice.

This practice is but one example of the development of a digital prosumer culture, where those that enjoy many different types of content are able to be both consumed and then reproduced for consumer benefit.

References

Ritzer, G., & Jurgenson, N 2010, ‘Production, consumption, prosumption: the nature of capitalism in the age of the digital ‘prosumer’’, Journal of Consumer Culture, vol.10, no.1, pp.13-36.

Justin.TV Inc, 2013, ‘All about Twitch – Twitch’ retrieved September 2013 at http://www.twitch.tv/p/about