 Entertainment services
Multimedia such as video, audio and graphics are used extensively on the Internet. Many different online services make use of them, and this is especially so for those of the ‘entertainment’ variety. Anyone with an Internet connection has the ability to access radio stations, video clips and games.
Below is a selection of some of the services currently available:
- Music video web sites and download stores (MTV, iTunes etc...)
- Online multi player gaming services (Xbox Live, Playstation Network Gaming etc...)
- Online television (Now Broadband TV etc... )
- Online radio stations (Radio AOL, Choice FM etc...)
- Comical cartoons (Calvin and Hobbes etc..)
These services give people more opportunities to interrelate collectively and enable them to keep up-to-date with developments in entertainment generally. For example, people are able to use search engines and other web sites to find what is currently being shown at their local cinema—this can save time and money because there is now no need to ring up a cinema’s voice machine and wait to hear the times a film is being shown.
Networked multi-user video games are now used by millions across the Internet each day. This has given birth to new genres of computer games. MMORPG is an example of a genre that has only come into existence due to the growth of the use of the Internet for entertainment purposes. MMORPG stands for massive multiplayer online role-playing game.
Because of the interactive nature of online gaming, games have united groups of people into ‘virtual cultures’ which are not divided by geography. Friendships are built and sustained over the Internet and sometimes gamers meet up at national or even international tournaments!
Click next to find out more about online gaming… |
