Digital Multimedia

 Definition of Digital Multimedia

Digital multimedia is a term that refers to any product that incorporates more than 2 of the following: images, animation, audio, video or text. 

3 examples of multimedia products

1. Social media

Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn are all examples of social media that use multimedia. 

Instagram

Instagram's main purpose is to deliver multimedia. Creative Process' Instagram account uses photographs, captions, and videos to advertise its business. In terms of social interaction, the tagging feature allows other users to tag Creative Process in their post and create a cross-account dialogue. 

The images chosen reflect the theme of the account ('empowering the next generation of digital talent') - there are pictures of young people interacting with tech; group photos celebrating success and inspirational memes. In order to display longer text, this has been uploaded as an image:

Images are attractive, digitally manipulated works of art used to position the brand within a creative, on-trend industry. 

Two short videos with captions, images and music promote the Digital Accelerator course and the Apprenticeship scheme. The music for the Accelerator course is uplifting, higher-pitched and when set against the colourful slides gives an approachable feel, whereas the music accompanying the Apprenticeship video lends an edgier air, with heavier electronic beats set against black and white video footage.  

2. Advertising

Digital video advertising uses images, text and sound to create a user experience. Digital advertising videos have the capacity to be accessible on-demand on platforms such as YouTube and can spread virally if there is sufficient user interest in the content or if the video-sharing platform's algorithms promote the video sufficiently for this to happen. 

Washing powder brand Ariel India created a series of memorable adverts with the hashtag 'Share the load'. This 2016 video shows a father regretting the example he has set for his daughter as she juggles a business call, housework, childcare and meal preparation after a day at work while her husband relaxes and watches the television: 

The story has a happy ending as the grandfather goes home to help his wife with the laundry. A similar story is told in a 2020 video by the same brand: the wife is seen to be managing the house and having no time to relax - housework is even cutting into her sleep. By the end of the advert, the man has started helping her with the laundry. 

Both videos use non-diegetic sound to induce an emotional reaction in the listener: in the first video, it is the heartfelt tone of the grandfather's letter to her daughter which he is reading out loud. In the second video, the wistful, minimalist piano music moves quietly through minor and major chords to evoke a feeling of regret. 

Through both the choice of props/scenery, in-production and post-production filters, the colour palette for both videos is muted, with the majority of shades lying in the grey-beige-brown tonal range. This choice of colour could be read at once as homely, food/comfort-related, and at the same time, the narrowly controlled colour scheme is suggestive of suppression or repression, lacking as it is in tonal range. Against this backdrop, the white, green and red of the Ariel packaging stands out, making sure that consumers notice the brand. 

How successful this is in terms of direct brand recognition and promotion is perhaps debatable. Having not seen the original advert for a few years, I searched not for 'Ariel advert India' but rather for 'laundry advert working woman housework India', as I couldn't remember the brand. However, perhaps the gender equality message of this video was always intended to be more important than the brand: through the use of #ShareTheLoad, viewers can find more multimedia produced by both Ariel and other entities that explore the theme of sharing household duties. Equally, users can work their way from a different starting point on the web to the Ariel videos through exploring related multimedia channels that contain this hashtag. 

3. Streaming services

Streaming services are subscription-based services such as YouTube, the platform on which the Ariel advert appeared. Vimeo, Netflix, Amazon Instant and NowTV are all service providers that transmit audio and video files in a continuous flow over the internet.

Netflix uses a short, easily identifiable opening intro audio clip (above), known to its creator as the 'ta-dum'. The sound device will invoke different feelings in different listeners, but to me, something about the 'ta-dah!' drumbeat suggests the revealing of a magic trick, and the swelling sound after it sounds like the noise that a computer program or space ship door might make upon opening. This suggests something exciting and digital.

The logo, red against black, is bold, exciting and sophisticated. The consumer is presented with this alongside the audio clip described above, creating a multimedia experience.

Over the whole platform, black, red and white are used as the key colours, creating a sense of brand identity across products, both those produced by Netflix and those films with transmission rights acquired from elsewhere. Landscape shots of films with carefully chosen text promote the films, and the catalogue is easily searchable. As the consumer uses the platform, Netflix builds up a picture of films that the user would like to see and tailors a recommendations list accordingly.

Netflix started as a DVD-by-post rental service in 1997 and built its advantage over the competition through offering popular and high-quality films, which together with a well-designed website helped increase their rentals and revenue. The company started small, ironing out warehouse and delivery issues as they went along. In 2003, they were far ahead of late-entry competitors to the DVD-by-post market, Blockbusters, who had an enterprise built on bricks-and-mortar and swiftly went out of business in their scramble to compete. Fast-forward to 2012, and Netflix started streaming their films online, likely reducing overheads (packaging, warehouse space) in the process, and also opening up the possibility of collecting data about consumer behaviours and preferences in real-time.

The fact that Netflix now produces its own films, rather than solely relying on a percentage of income generated by streaming other films, is a testament to its success as a brand and as a digital multimedia company.