Review of 2007/08 - EM Media

24
CHANGING LANDSCAPES/INNOVATIVE LEARNING/NEW HORIZONS
Throughout 2007/08
the shifting, transforming
broadcast sector impacted on the
make-up of companies and public
venues in the East Midlands as
suppliers sought to produce
content for increasingly global
markets, and ever-changing tastes
and audiences sought new ways
to engage with, participate in and
consume media.
Against a backdrop of rapid growth in digital channels and
platforms TV’s position as the dominant cultural format
continued to evolve. As audiences moved to Video on
Demand and internet-based entertainment and traditional
revenues fell, broadcasters looked to new ways of
operating and began to take risks with experimental
commissioning. This provided real and exciting
opportunities for regional companies ready to embrace
the new convergent and digital landscape.
2007/08 witnessed significant changes to the region’s
digital landscape as new developments were completed.
Broadway Media Centre in Nottingham completed its
£5.7m development phase in October 2007 resulting in a
re-purposed digital media centre complete with four
cinema screens, two with digital facilities, as well as
housing many creative companies. The Derby QUAD
development prepared for its unveiling in September 2008
and Leicester’s Phoenix Square, a unique combination of
the arts, workspace and architect-designed homes,
opens to the public in autumn 2009.
The East Midlands is home to numerous new media
companies offering content and services of increasing
interest to broadcasters in the convergent landscape -
from online games to digital marketing, comedy, animation
and Virtual World expertise. Regional companies are also
employing the latest technological developments in the
most innovative ways – in the case of Intuitive Media,
harnessing technology to revolutionise learning.
Broadway Media Centre• Nottingham
QUAD • Derby
Phoenix Square • Leicester