‘I have never met a single person who doesn’t skip an ad given the choice’
Josh Banham, a 17-year-old student from London, gives a candid insight on youth media consumption…
Social networks
I use a variety of social networks and internet sites for many different things. I keep a blog on tumblr, I post photos and use chat on Facebook and I tweet regularly. I visit other sites like YouTube and Amazon for specific needs but not generally to browse.
What I like most about social networks is how instantaneous they are. Not only this, but I enjoy the fact that I can easily talk to people anywhere in the world – for example, my cousin, who is currently studying in America.
It’s difficult to have much of an idea of how different these sites, and indeed the internet itself, has affected my life because I’ve never been without it. The internet came to full fruition in 1994 – the year I was born. Because of this I’ve never consciously lived in a world without the internet and social networking sites.
I use the internet mostly for social networking. I have access to Facebook on my computer, phone and even my Xbox (although I don’t view it via my console) so it’s very easy to access. Due to the fact that I am not alone in being able to access Facebook in copious ways and everyone I know has a Facebook account, I use it frequently to keep up with what’s happening with my friends.
One of the most useful things that I see Facebook used for is events. Inviting people to a party or any other event is so easy and probably the most practical way.
Adverts on Facebook are not intrusive and seem to appear according to what you search for most. They can actually sometimes be very informative – for example, I have found out about bands I am now a huge fan of through Facebook adverts.
YouTube
With YouTube it’s another thing entirely. When the website started it didn’t have adverts and yet since it was purchased by Google, the decision was made to include them. Banner ads don’t bother me as they are very unobtrusive and easily ignored, however, adverts before video clips are completely ridiculous.
What is even more ridiculous is the fact that you can skip many of them after five seconds – what was the point in the first place? I have never met a single person who doesn’t skip an advert given the choice. In a way being able to skip adverts adds to the frustration of the situation as it makes it obvious that these adverts are unimportant and uninteresting from the outset.
Press
With regards to news, I access it in many forms. I do use the internet for a majority of my reading simply because it’s free. The Guardian website is what I access most, with music based sites like NME.com and Pitchfork for more specific information.
Despite this I prefer to read physical publications for a number of reasons. For one, I find that the writing online is often far under par to what it is in printed format. As most people who write for the internet sites also write for the printed version this sounds ridiculous, but I still feel there is a marked difference.
Another reason why I prefer the printed press is that the adverts are actually interesting to read and in high resolution. Unless you have a very good computer (I don’t!) then adverts, no matter how well designed, will never look as good as they would if they were on paper. They are also far less intrusive. NME.com, for example, often has its entire background as an advert, which pops up if it is moused over. This happens by accident a lot of the time and is extremely annoying and one of the main reasons I use the site less than I used to.
There is also a more sentimental feeling behind the printed press. My dad kept the newspapers from the day me and my brother were born and despite being brown and withering now, there is still something special about them. Printed press lasts for a long time and the aging it succumbs to, that the internet does not, somehow makes it more endearing.
TV online
Watching TV online is, for me, too much hassle to be worthwhile. There are so many reasons why I don’t like using my laptop as a TV replacement – namely, the size. My laptop is pretty standard, if a little old. The screen is 15″ and given that most TVs now days are upwards of 32″ there is no comparison. The quality is also a huge issue as there are now so many HD channels and programmes being broadcast that using a laptop that does not have HD capability is a waste of time.
No matter how good your internet connection is, the speed and quality of the programme can be affected by how good the computer you’re using is – something you don’t get with conventional television. As an advertiser it also makes more sense to push TV over internet broadcasting as people take a lot more interest in adverts if they have no distractions. If you are on a laptop and an advert were to come on, you can simply switch over and check Facebook or play music.
Music
Music is a really difficult medium to access legally on the internet. There are hundreds of file sharing sites and streaming sites that are easily accessible on the internet but very few that give money to the artist. I make music for myself and post it on sites like Soundcloud and Bandcamp for free download, however I don’t believe that this should be the case for professional musicians. If you want to make money from music online there is no reason they shouldn’t be able to.
One of the most irritating uses of adverts on the internet comes in the form of Spotify. In my opinion, the idea behind the service is bad for the industry anyway; however the adverts that are forced down your throat every couple of songs (sometimes up to three) are highly annoying. What’s worse is that the only way to get rid of the adverts is a pricey subscription, of which I imagine very little goes directly to the actual artists that you listen to.
Digital Magazines
I don’t believe that digital publications will ever take over from physical ones. From an advertising stand point I’m much more likely to purchase something I see in an advert in a magazine – it seems much more legitimate. It’s also much easier to target specific audiences because people are much more likely to purchase something else related to their interests.
Advertising
Adverts don’t bother me in magazines or on TV because I am used to them. The digital world was designed for free media and internet advertising is still a fairly new concept that I still find frustrating. If I access a website for free, I do not expect to be bombarded with adverts asking me to pay for something else. It is just illogical.