How media are changing: six trends for the future

The media world is changing at an accelerating pace, affecting everyone who engages with it: users driving change through their consumption choices, professionals who want to work in the sector, and marketing and communications managers dealing with organizations that follow different principles from the print newspapers they were accustomed to. We explore these developments through a recent insight from Bain & Company.

1. Immediate omnichannel distribution

Faster download speeds on phones have raised expectations for “I want everything, right here, right now.” During the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic, streaming on phones grew by more than 40%. Think about it: at a time when people were sitting at home in front of enormous screens, they still wanted to watch videos on the small screens they carried with them all day.

As well as demanding the content they want, where and when they want it, consumers also expect content to be interconnected. This is where we begin to see cohesion become fundamental across media platforms, and media start merging with other sectors, such as retail.

This creates demand for instant gratification, meaning consumers want content immediately; unified platforms, allowing a quick switch from one piece of content to another, from a story to text, video, or a podcast; and live commerce, the trend of buying during social livestreams, emerging particularly from Asian markets as a form of social commerce.

2. “My Media”

People consuming content expect an increasingly personalized experience. Data collection—although recently debated because of privacy concerns—and artificial intelligence serve this purpose. This is not new in itself, but what was once a novelty is now becoming something users expect from online media.

3. A global outlook

One of the most exciting things to emerge from a more connected world has been, well, the world. Content exposure has increased, global connections have grown, and so has the demand for authenticity and understanding of the diverse world we live in. A more interconnected world makes it possible to reach niche audiences with locally personalized content and to hold media responsible for diverse, global representation.

4. Prosumers

Consumers are increasingly becoming content producers and expect to play this role when interacting with their brands and the media. This is fundamental both for media organizations, which must include their followers in content creation to maximize engagement, and for brands, which can use these forms of crowdsourcing in digital campaigns.

5. The metaverse

If you hear “metaverse” and think of video games, you are not wrong, but the phenomenon goes further. (If you think of Superman, we congratulate DC Comics on the effectiveness of its content.) As virtual worlds develop, they are incorporating concerts, shopping, and other experiences once considered exclusively physical. These worlds create alternative lives for their users, and the idea of alternative virtual environments will gradually spread into everyday life beyond gaming.

6. Beyond reality

Today, virtual environments exist online, but they are beginning to merge with our physical reality. Augmented reality (AR), in particular, supported by artificial intelligence, is likely to be more transformative than virtual reality (VR) in the short term, given the ability to overlay AR seamlessly onto everyday life. The next wave of technology will expand the potential of human-machine interaction, combining on-screen experiences with our physical world.

For example, in April 2021, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art partnered with Snap to offer five AR-enhanced exhibitions across the city, allowing viewers to see virtual art displays through their phones. Users therefore increasingly expect to live in a world where content blends with reality.

How communication is changing

These developments change the relationship between media and users, and between users and brands. Since some trends are still at an early stage, there is room to make innovative content production a distinctive feature of a communication campaign. At Smartitaly Communications, together with our network of partners, we have decided to enable the inclusion of innovative assets in communication strategies using augmented reality, artificial intelligence, and blockchain. This allows companies to communicate in a way that is not only integrated and digital but fully part of the new digital paradigm: Web3.