Anything ever - FLCL

FLCL (Furi Kuri or Fooly Cooly) is a 6 episode Japanese animation series produced by Gainax and put straight onto DVD.
The main character is a 12 year old boy called Naota Nandaba, who lives in the quiet town of Mabase along with his perverted father and grandfather. His companions include his brother’s high school ex-girlfriend, and his friends who are obsessed with sporks.

Not soon after Naota has told of the restrictive and boring nature of Mabase, a strange alien woman (Haruhara Haruko) on a Vespa rides up to him and whacks him in the forehead with her Rickenbacker electric guitar.

Haruko’s confrontation with the controlling company Medical Mechanica in order to find “Atomisk” ends up turning Naota’s life upside-down, whilst he also has to deal with the other characters. His brother’s ex-girlfriend Mamimi continues to commit arson and burden him with her affection and antisocial delinquency, whilst Ninamori, the conflicted daughter of the corrupt town mayor also begins to take an interest in him. Over the duration of the show, many of the character’s issues are addressed, for example Naota is forced to confront the way he lives in his successful brother’s shadow, and in one episode he actually saves the town with his underlying heroics. Even after all of these events, however, when Haruko leaves to pursue her love, everything goes back to how it used to be, and Naota returns to his monologue about how restrictive and boring the town is.

As FLCL was brought out straight onto DVD, this cut out the potential opportunity of airing it on television, and thus restricts the audience reach not only from the show but also the advertising. This loss in money, however, was equalled out by the fact that each episode was sold separately on individual DVDs. As this is a rather unconventional way of releasing a show, it grabbed the audience from that alone, and the slow rate at which they were released built up anticipation and kept people wanting more.

The series also has 2 graphic novels based on the show, however they have a slightly different take on events and do not actually feature any proper storyline. It is because of this unexplained nature of the novels that they tend to be bought by big fans of the show, in order to expand their knowledge of the story and characters, rather than a mainstream independent project. This is a good example of vertical integration, taking full advantage of the niche audience that watches anime/reads comics.

Key concepts:
- Vertical integration
- Narrowcasting
- Convergence

Here is a very short clip of the show:

One newly released media technology – Playstation 3

The Playstation 3, or PS3, is the third console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment, and is part of the seventh generation of videogame consoles, along with the Nintendo Wii and the Microsoft Xbox 360. It was brought out in Japan on November 11th 2006, and eventually in Europe on March 23rd 2007, with the reason for the large release date gap being so Sony would have produced enough consoles to meet demands. At the start there were 2 available models of PS3 – ones with 20GB of hard-drive memory, and ones with 60GB. Seeing as the advanced new games for the PS3 saved onto the memory would take up a lot of space and an external hard-drive is visually undesirable, almost everyone who purchased a PS3 bought the 60GB model. As a result of this, the 20GB model has been very recently discontinued in America on April 11th 2007. The 20GB model is still available to buy in Japan, however there has been no confirmation of a PAL release.
The console is backwards compatible (can play games made for the Playstation and Playstation 2), which is an example of the vertical integration involved in the design of the PS3. This is a very important feature, as many of the most popular games made are for the older consoles, and it also means that Sony can carry on producing games for the Playstation 2 up to and beyond the release of the PS3 without them being seen as out-dated. The other new/improved features of the PS3 are as follows:

- Next generation Cell processor
- HDMI output
- Includes: MemoryStick / SD / Compact Flash slots
- Wireless 802.11 b/g
- Ethernet connection
- Motion sensing wireless Bluetooth controller
- Next generation Blu-ray drive
- Supports USB keyboards and mice
- Stream audio and video to your PS3
- 4x USB2.0 ports
- Backwards compatible with PlayStation 1 and 2 games
- Virtual memory card capabilities save your old PS1/PS2 games
- Dimensions: 325mm (w) x 98mm (h) x 274mm (d)
- Weight: 5kg
- PLAYSTATION 3 games are region-free (some languages and video output resolutions may not be supported in games purchased from outside the UK)

This is a very good example of convergence, which is something Sony is very keen on as they try to take a hold on all of the main media technology markets with single machines such as the PS3. Once purchased, the owner of a PS3 will be spared from having to buy many other media devices, for example a stereo for playing music and a DVD player for watching films. All of these features and the advanced Blu-ray technology mean that Sony can justify the huge price gap between the PS3 and its rival consoles – the Nintendo Wii at £180, the Microsoft Xbox 360 at £280 and the Sony PS3 at £425.
Key concepts:
- Convergence
- Vertical integration
- Quality

One Vlog: YouTube

YouTube is an online video posting website, where people can upload their own personal digital videos for the whole world to watch for free. Videos can then go on to be rated by other users, have comments left, and also be tagged as favourites. The number of times a video is made someone’s “Favourite” is shown along side the total number of views. YouTube is not only host to personal videos, but also music videos, television show clips, advertisements and general event clips from around the world. These can then be searched and found by typing in keywords to the search bar, which seeks out titles or tags featuring said words.
The front page is a neutral white and blue colour scheme, with the videos catching the eye as opposed to the general text. The most popular clips - judged by the number of views - of the day are then listed along with large thumbnails and brief descriptions. This is one of the ways in which YouTube allows anybody to become famous in their own right, by giving them an outlet for their brand of entertainment and making it stand out on the front page. The member login for YouTube is not as essential as on many other websites, as non-members can still view all the videos posted on the site, however do not have the ability to upload any videos for themselves.
“Channels” are also very popular amongst YouTube’s community, with the top channels also featured on the front page. Channels are video threads that are from one specific user, which can be subscribed to so if a new video is posted by that user, the subscriber is informed and can then watch it. As a result of these channels and highly viewed videos, there are now many people who have become famous purely from YouTube and have gone on to do other things, for example Brooke Brodack signed a contract with Carson Daly’s mainstream media company.

Key concepts:
- Immediacy
- Personalisation
- Flexibility
- Democratisation
- Online surveillance

Example video: Robot Chicken - Final Fantasy VII spoof



This is a sectioned-off clip from an episode of the popular American animated sketch show Robot Chicken - created, produced and usually voiced by Seth Green and Matthem Senreich. The style of the show's animated is stop motion, using clay characters. Each sketch makes a humorous reference to something in the media eye, whether is be a celebrity, a television or radio show, a film or a videogame. In this case, the reference is a videogame, and prods fun at the battle system of the game, as well as the soundtrack and functionality. The jokes made in this specific sketch are ones that only people that have played the game would understand, meaning that it is able to narrowcast to that niche audience. This narrowcasting is then balanced out by the sheer number of sketches in each show, with some lasting only a couple of seconds.

One radio station website - CapitalFM.com

The homepage for the Capital FM website is a very information-packed one. The page is long, and there are many advertisements and interactive links scattered over the page, all in full motion. This then reflects on the radio station’s modern take on London life, as they make full use of the advantages the internet provides. Also, the particularly high level of interactivity could be a way for the station to compensate for the unavoidable lack of visual stimulation that comes with listening to the radio. News reports occupy the majority of the page, with each main story in its own boxed off section which gives them individual importance. Accompanied by a small, related, thumbnail picture, the boxes are only large enough to contain a short summary of the available expansion which can be accessed by clicking on the image.
The advertisements help build up the institutional identity of Capital FM, showing it is a major name, and thus has sponsorship from other big companies. There are also competitions available to enter, with the prizes always very desirable to the target audience e.g. an iPod, or a mobile phone. Many companies tend to use the free giveaways as another chance to advertise their brand, and in this instance the iPod is customised with the Capital FM logo. The site also has the personalised option of listening to a radio show of choice through the site – merging new technology with their existing equipment.
Due to the sheer amount of content packed onto the page, there are many necessary different sections of each set of links. The main categories placed at the top of the page are as follows:
- Home
- DJs and shows
- Listen
- Pics
- Music
- Film
- Events
- VIP
- News
- Charity
- FAQs

These are then expanded when hovered over by the mouse, helping to keep the page neat despite the large number of links featured.
The language used on the page is a clear indication of the target audience for Capital FM. Words and phrases such as “pics”, “check out” and “the gang” litter the headlines and summaries alongside exclamation marks, giving the whole institute a younger, trendy feel.

Key concepts:
- Interactivity
- Proliferation
- Non-linear
- Convergence
- Vertical integration

One radio show website: Flirty @ 9:30 – Capital FM

“Flirty @ 9:30” on Capital FM is a light-hearted radio show with the theme of young romance and, obviously, flirting. The colour scheme is all pinks and greys, which goes along with the flirty theme of the show. Images of candy provide eye-catching thumbnails, which both brighten up and page and show the target audience is young people.
The main purpose of the website, aside from advertising the radio programme, is to provide a domain for the show podcasts. This way they can reach people who do not own radios and people who do not schedule their day to fit the programme slot. Podcasting is a good way for radio shows to get heard outside the radio, and to involve other forms of media consumption. There is podcasting help, to aid those who are not familiar with podcasts – further expanding the audience reach – and users can also choose to listen to the radio shows through their computers. Below the main choices is the option to send this show to a friend, which is a way of controlling and enforcing word-of-mouth advertising.
Users can log in to the site from a central boxed off section, and the accompanied VIP image suggests that if they do log in/register, access ca be gained to VIP information and features will. The contact information box is a very important one, as this particular programme relies quite heavily on audience participation, using their experiences and stories as features on the show. The various options of contact method – text, phone or email – lessen the effort the audience would go through, and thus increases the chances of communication. Other than the ability to listen and download the show, and the basic information about the show, the website does not have any other features. There is nothing interactive and no further development offered up, which implies this show is not one of the most popular on Capital’s rota.

Key concepts:
- Non-linear
- Portability
- Flexibility
- Democratisation
- Convergence

One blog – MySpace.com

MySpace is a social network site, used by all people of all ages (however mainly teenagers) to keep in touch with friends, and extend their set of contacts. Owners of “myspaces” can put up pictures, blogs, music and videos, as well as adding general information about themselves for the whole world to see. It is by far the most popular social networking site in the world, with less popular sites being “Hi5.com” and “Bebo.com”.
Each “myspace” has a friends area, where they can choose a select number of close friends to appear on their site under the title “Top Friends”. The number of these friends can range from 4 to 24, and people can even program their sites to not display any friends at all. Underneath said friends is a comments section, where accepted friends of the user may post a comment for people to read. Depending on how well you can program myspace, your comment can be all different fonts, colours, sizes, and even feature images and videos.
The personal customisation of a myspace helps to make it stand out from all others, and helps the users to feel that their myspace reflects who they are. There are various websites which offer tutorials as to how to edit a myspace, with some even going as far as to have readily selectable designs for you. As a result, no myspace is ever the same, much like the people they are representing. The astounding popularity of MySpace.com has meant the extension into various other countries, with the sites currently on offer as follows:

- MySpace Global
- MySpace Australia
- MySpace Canada (in English)
- MySpace Canada (in French)
- MySpace France
- MySpace Germany
- MySpace Ireland
- MySpace Italy
- MySpace Japan
- MySpace Mexico
- MySpace New Zealand
- MySpace Spain
- MySpace UK
- MySpace USA

Key concepts:
- Personalisation
- Reach
- Flexibility
- Non-linear

Fan website – FFextreme.com

FFextreme is a fan site devoted to Role-Playing games, specifically those in the Final Fantasy series. This dedication is clearly shown by the navigation bar with roman numerals on it, which provide links to the more popular Final Fantasy titles. It is the familiarity of only needing numerals for the actual game in question to be obvious that shows the sites thorough knowledge of the games, and also tells us that the fans that tend to visit this site are more serious than most gamers. Along the side is another navigation bar, however this one has more options as to which games to look at, and features titles related to the Role-Playing genre - not just Final Fantasy.
The colour scheme is mainly blues, black and white, with light text on a dark background which gives the site a professional pristine. Pictures of game screenshots help to brighten up the monochrome site background, and also act to promote the advanced graphics used in the games featured. The “News Desk” is where the updates go, whether they be about upcoming events, site renovations or industry news. The main advertisement in the top centre of the page is for the site forums, inviting users to check out the return of the simply named “Final Fantasy Forums”.
Overall FFextreme provides much more information and related material than the official sites, providing extras that attract the audience to browse fan sites as opposed to the official ones. An example of these extras is as follows:

Final Fantasy X –

Game Coverage: Abilities List
Aeons
Al Bhed
Armor
Battle System
Blitzball
Characters
Chocobo
Guides & Faqs
Items
Magic
Overdrives
Sidequests
Sphere Grid
Transportation
Walkthrough
Weapons
World Map

Media: Artwork
FMV Images
Lyrics
MIDIs
Screenshots
Sheet Music
Shop
Soundtracks
Videos
Wallpaper

Key concepts:
- Proliferation
- Narrowcasting
- Non-linear