A Glimpse of the Next Episode - Nokia examines the future

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Nokia recently released a press release about a report it had comissioned, 'A Glimpse of the Next Episode' which talked about the future of entertainment. The main trend identified was the coming of 'Circular Entertainment' (content created, edited and shared within a peer community rather than traditional media sources). Nokia have now released a number of videos featuring discussion around some of the key areas of the report. Read on for more and to view the videos.

The videos feature Timo Veikkola, Senior Future Specialist Nokia Design, and Tom Savigar, Trends Director at The Future Laboratory (who carried out the research for Nokia). They offer an excellent grounding into some of the ideas and insights generated by the report.

I'm often asked why I think (the future of) mobile is so important - the simple answer is that it will change the way we lives our lives and the way we interact with one another. However this doesn't really tell you much and of course there is no one answer, but these videos may give you pause for thought and suggest future trends and areas of development in the future of entertainment (a very broad area!).

The first video introduces the report and discusses some of the key trends that the reports see in the future of entertainment.

It is worth watching this video first to get an introduction to the study, but also to understand some of the terminology used. There's no doubt that mobile devices are changing the way we experience entertainment and the idea put forth in this series of videos are compelling. However it is probably fair to say that the changes will impact most on the younger generation. Future trends such as immersive living, geek culture, G-tech and localism are no universally homogeneous, they will touch us all in different ways and to different extents.

There are also a number of subject orientated videos which discuss specific areas. Watching these should give you an insight into some of the areas discussed in the report. 

The future of Mobile and Inline Entertainment 

The future of Wikis

The future of Music

The future of Blogging

 Press release extract:
 
 "From our research we predict that up to a quarter of the entertainment being consumed in five years will be what we call 'Circular'. The trends we are seeing show us that people will have a genuine desire not only to create and share their own content, but also to remix it, mash it up and pass it on within their peer groups - a form of collaborative social media," said Mark Selby, Vice President, Multimedia, Nokia.
 
Selby continues, "We think it will work something like this; someone shares video footage they shot on their mobile device from a night out with a friend, that friend takes that footage and adds an MP3 file - the soundtrack of the evening - then passes it to another friend. That friend edits the footage by adding some photographs and passes it on to another friend and so on. The content keeps circulating between friends, who may or may not be geographically close, and becomes part of the group's entertainment."
 
Tom Savigar, Trends Director at The Future Laboratory added, "Consumers are increasingly demanding their entertainment be truly immersive, engaging and collaborative. Whereas once the act of watching, reading and hearing entertainment was passive, consumers now and in the future will be active and unrestrained by the ubiquitous nature of circular entertainment. Key to this evolution is consumers' basic human desire to compare and contrast, create and communicate. We believe the next episode promises to deliver the democracy politics can only dream of."
 
As part of the research we have identified four key driving trends; Immersive Living; Geek Culture;  G Tech and Localism. These trends are currently sitting on the edge, but as these trends become more mainstream, they will have a collaborative, creative effect on the way people consume entertainment and, we predict, will lead to the Circular Entertainment phenomenon.
 
  • Immersive Living - Immersive Living is the rise of lifestyles which blur the reality of being on and offline. Entertainment will no longer be segmented; people can access and create it wherever they are.

  • Geek Culture - This triumph marks a shift as consumers become hungry for more sophisticated entertainment. Geek Culture rises, consumers will want to be recognized and rewarded - the boundaries between being commercial and creative will blur.
     
  • G Tech - G Tech is an existing social force in Asia that will change the way entertainment will look. Forget pink and sparkly, it is about the feminization of technology that is currently underway. Entertainment will be more collaborative, democratic, emotional and customized - all of which are 'female' traits.
     
  • Localism - The report uncovered a locally-minded sprit emerging in entertainment consumption and Localism will become a key theme of future entertainment. Consumers will take pride in seeking out the local and home-grown.
The extensive research identifies the trends, along with the technologies, that will be pivotal in the next episode of entertainment. In conclusion, the results of the survey lead Nokia to believe in the next episode; entertainment will be circular.