Converting artefacts into products has become commonplace in this climate of produsage, and its collaborative, open source, decentralised communites. The shake up of the traditional power paradigms of top down production has seen enormous amounts of creativity and inventiveness from everyday people marketing their businesses and services, and themselves. For example, the cameraman who has just started his own production company; the small town musician who is wanting to get his name out and the up and coming fashion designer…you get the point. This power change has also seen new innovations in hobbies and niche interests, such as the kitesurfing communities who are “sharing and collaboratively improving their designs for the aerodynamic kites they use to propel themselves through the surf; such designs are then turned into physical objects” (Bruns 2008). These produsage designs are often better than those designed by the kitesurfing industry, demonstrating the effectiveness of produsage as a working tool. This also exposes the idea that we are all creative beings and can contribute to and enhance our own niche interests and hobbies. As discussed in the tutorial, this new way of developing products changes the way we look at, and feel about these products. A broad example is the fashion and clothing industry. Back in the day, our grandmothers might have only bought a new dress for a very special occasion. Nowadays because fashion translates across the world so quickly, chain stores adapt the latest red carpet looks every few months. This product development, in turn affects the way we interact with and feel about the product. So, because fashion is so much more transient and ever-changing, we buy a lot more clothes to keep up with the latest trends. It is within this climate that sites like ebay have taken off.
One major internet news story from last week articulates exactly what we’re talking about. Clare ‘the Kings Cross bogan’ became an overnight internet sensation after she was filmed reporting a false account of a Sydney shooting involving two ‘wogs.’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjkQSREjxH0
Now, just over a week later, she has attracted a huge following of fans from all over the world – to the extent that she now has a publicist. Marketers have latched onto the trend, putting Clare’s face on t-shirts and coffee mugs, with the catch phrase she used in her account of the shooting – ‘chk-chk boom’ among others. Clare the Kings Cross bogan has become a brand, with groups on facebook and discussions all over the internet, on twitter and news site comments. She is so famous now that Will Ferrel has said that “she’s very convincing” and could have a future in showbiz. Clare’s followers are exactly what you’d call produsers – they have produced content about Clare, posting the video on YouTube and creating Facebook fan pages among other things. The fans are also consumers because marketers are taking advantage of the brand converting the artefact into physical products. In this era of reality TV and more idiot celebrities than you can poke a stick at, this example is something we have definitely seen before. Think back to Big Brother, and how the contestants were transformed into celebrities and used to promote nightclubs, or a certain point of view, represented in their personalities. This demonstrates the broader issue that we are consuming more information now than ever before, because information now has such power, to market people and products.
Great posted! Very interesting ideas, I really liked how you took our unit ideas and made them relevant with current events. You also used a wide variety of examples, its one thing to be able to understand unit content and the readings, but using examples I found very effective.
I think that it is really relevant to talk about “Bogan Claire,” excellent example. She is an instant phenomenon. CHK CHK BOOM, and it’s all over the WORLD!
it just goes to show how the idea prodousge has really connected were are and the amount of information that we have available. Its almost scary how quickly information and news spreads, literally its overnight. You could also tie and relate Clare and chk-boom with citizen journalism, that anyone can be a journalist now. I think it’s great that in a nut shells punked and took the piss out of media. Very interesting posted with great examples!
Jessica, I really enjoyed reading this blog. Before now I had not heard of the newest ‘idiot celebrity’ sensation Clare ‘the Kings Cross Bogan’. I even had fun browsing around YouTube to find out more about this issue.
In my own blog I have discussed the sustainability of the produsage model. I came to the conclusion that the model was not sustainable. However, more and more we see examples (such as Clare ‘the Kings Cross Bogan’) that are unnoticeably using the produsage model to market products by utilising online resources such as Facebook and YouTube. In my blog I argue that it is difficult to make money out of produsage projects. However, as you have pointed out in this case, they have found a way to make money by selling physical products (t-shirts). This example shows that in some circumstances, the produsage model proves to be effective and sustainable.
Although this is an example of a successful project, I do not believe that the current produsage model is as successful in providing credible academic knowledge and information. Perhaps as the produsage model currently stands, it is only sustainable for personal or interest-related topics (such as Clare’s self-marketing). To change this, I think professionals need to look to amateurs (such as Clare and her friends), to discover new and innovative ways to utilise the produsage model to effectively market their products in the new media environment.