By Philip Lelyveld
Questions about Millennial media habits were answered by six USC undergrads at the Sept. 20th ETC MegaSession. The students ranged from incoming freshmen to juniors, with study focuses covering computer science, engineering, gaming, 3D animation, media studies, and the business of entertainment.
These students watch movies either in theatres or on laptops and mobile devices. They rarely watch content on a TV, except as a social, community event in their dorms and houses.
When they are in a movie theatre, they may text or Facebook before the feature starts, and post their opinions after the feature, but they usually don’t use their devices during the feature. The consensus opinion was that they go to the theatre to be immersed in the experience. One student said that he occasionally texts a running commentary with his friends in the theatre, but that he has a “financial incentive” to pay attention to the feature.
They were curious and skeptical about second screen experiences in the theatre. They were not interested in second screen experiences that took them out of the immersive experience, or that contacted them afterwards unless they actively opted in. One student said; “I’ve always wondered if a film would be developed that integrated social media into the movie. I think it would be fantastic, but it would need to be specifically developed for that.”
They were asked ‘what really bugs you?’ when you go to the movie theatre. Previews that give too much away, or don’t reflect what the movie is really like, were the first two responses. Then a freshman redirected. “All the tech and choices are getting annoying. 3D, IMAX, etc. Especially when the tech is used badly. I first saw 3D at Disneyland where it jumped off the screen. In theatres the 3D was minor and disappointing.”
The students sought out, and paid for, the best available in-theatre tech experience for films that they anticipated would be viewing events. Their favorite movies of the last year are Batman (Dark Knight in IMAX), Avengers (in 3D), and Brave (in 3D). One student said “I love 3D. I saw Batman on my own, then saw it again in IMAX when my father paid.”
They watch live TV for event programming (ex. live sports), as well as social engagement programming (ex. watching the same show at the same time as their friends and texting or Facebooking them during the program). Mostly, though, they watch programs on Hulu and Netflix. They also mentioned iTunes, Crackle and the pirate site DeepDiscountDVD.
“Our generation is ‘I should be able to watch it right now,’ so if I can’t get it legitimately, I’ll find it. But most prefer to do it through Netflix and other legit channels,” one junior said. “My friends know which [piracy] websites are hot. It is info that is going around. At some of the sites you pay to share,” added one freshman.
Does audio visual quality matter to you? “If it is awful, you won’t watch it. But great and ok quality are equally acceptable,” said the media studies major. The freshman CS major said “all the stuff I find is fine. Quality isn’t a problem.” And the incoming 3D animation major said “for really visual movies, quality matters. For dramas, as long as I can hear it, the quality doesn’t matter.”
When did you last buy a DVD, and how are you watching movies now? One student collects DVDs, another couldn’t remember the last time she bought a DVD, and a third said he buys movies on iTunes instead. A sophomore added, “I buy movies I’m invested in, like the Harry Potter movies, but I rent movies that I have to watch for classes. The cloud is shifting my buying habits.” The students like turning on the commentary tracks, but only after they’ve watched the movie or show once without it.
Second screen activity at home was of interest as long as it adds value and doesn’t detract from the programming. Two students suggested pop-up facts pushed during the commercial breaks, rather than during the show. The students were defining second screen activity as something ‘pushed at them.’ They did not mention texting, tweeting, or other viewing-time commenting as a second screen activity.
An incoming student described his use of social media this way; “When I went to Hawaii for the summer before starting at USC, I tweeted asking for suggestions of things to do. I got many suggestions, including insider activities. I joined 20 USC Facebook groups when I got here. I use Gmail for professional communications, but it is linked to my USC email address so I only have to check one location.”
A junior commented; “I got my job at Sony by tweeting a headhunter. I’ve found social networks to be very useful for finding things, for staying connected to my friends, and for connecting to others and the world. ‘I use social media, and social media uses me.’”