Digital Media and Technology News

The extensive use of cell phones and better Internet connectivity has influenced our relationships, behavior, and society through social media networking sites. We now anticipate fast and efficient communication and access to a diverse range of content. Social networking sites like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn are popular platforms for sharing photos and videos and connecting with others. Niche networks like Classmates.com, Flixster, Patreon, and Medium have also gained popularity. Connecting with old classmates on Classmates.com, watching movie trailers on Flixter, supporting content creators on Patreon, and sharing ideas on Medium have all evolved to cater to a diverse society and help people form relationships with like-minded individuals. With fierce competition in social media, platforms must offer distinctive and inventive features to appeal to and retain users (Tassi, 2012). Ethics and law have raised concerns about mental illness, misinformation, and data security. Social

AMC Theatres is the largest movie theater chain in the United States, with 600 cinemas and around 200 million customers. With over 60 million registered users, Vudu is one of the most well-known streaming video services on demand. On June 1, 2023, AMC Theatres On Demand transferred its entire film library to Vudu, a Fandango-owned digital video-on-demand service. Through their partnership, users gained access to over 200,000 films and television programs, which include “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” “John Wick: Chapter 4,” “Avatar: The Way of Water,” and much more. The new partnership allows Vudu to profit from movies playing in AMC Theaters while growing its user base. AMC also benefits, as it will earn a portion of the revenue (Spangler, 2023). FandangoNOW subscribers maintained access to any content they already purchased. Both their movies and TV series automatically transferred to Vudu. Vudu’s on-demand library competes with Apple iTunes, Amazon Prime Video, and Google Play/YouT

Streaming services provide access to vast music libraries for a low monthly fee, allowing users to listen to whatever they want without making large purchases. The result has given the industry more control over the distribution of its music, and more people have signed up for these services. Therefore, this has helped to boost the music industry's revenue and revive it. The music industry saw hope in streaming services, but reports suggest that streaming services such as Spotify are reducing royalties while competitors like XBox Music pay musicians more per stream. (Wagner, 2018). As illustrated below by Statista, Xbox Music pays the most by far at 2.73 cents per stream, while Youtube pays the lowest at 0.07 cents per stream. Other streaming platforms pay the following: Rhapsody at 1.68 cents per stream; Tidal at 1.28 cents per stream; Apple Music at 0.78 cents per stream; Amazon at 0.74 cents per stream; Deezer at 0.62 cents per stream; Google at 0.61 cents per stream; Spotify