Submissions/A history of home entertainment

Please note that this submission is not yet complete because the abstract is too brief.

Note to the proposal's author(s): A member of the Programme Committee marked your proposal as incomplete to encourage you to expand it. While you are not required to do so, and may leave your submission as is, you have until the submission deadline, 30 April 2013, to review the submission guidelines and complete your proposal if you wish. Once you are done, you may remove this tag.

This is an open submission for Wikimania 2013.

Submission no.: 7001
Subject no.: O

Title of the submission: A history of home entertainment

Type of submission: Presentation

Author of the submission: Eric Gmeinder

Country of origin: United States

Affiliation: User of Wikipedia

E-mail address: egmeindergmail.com

Username: Theskinnytypist

Personal homepage or blog: lettertoanunknownwoman.blogspot.com

Abstract: True to the title, this is a chronology of the evolution of the pastime, from the invention of the first VCR, to streaming today.

Detailed proposal: The first part of this presentation is an introduction, where it will be explained that home video has a long and very interesting history.

The real first part, though, deals with the the old-hat practice of looking out for movies on TV and the contrasts to and advantages over that, which could be appreciated for the first time by the common person during the golden age of VHS. Also discussed will be technicalities in the playing of, and the differences between, VHS, Betamax and Laserdisc, plus how even the comparative flop Betamax crushed any competition for further VCRs. Additionally, the economic and advertising factors that crushed competition against VHS will be examined.

The second part details the revolutionary changes that came with the introduction of the DVD in 1997, as well as the details of the negotation that led to a more marketed replacement to Laserdisc. Another area of discussion will be how, although VHS was still atop until 2002, it faded remarkably fast afterward. And another topic will be the interestingly slow manner in which this entertainment evolved until DVD.

The third part is about Blu-ray Disc, introduced in 2006, and how it conquered its nearest competitor, HD DVD, similarly to how Betamax was conquered by VHS. Further material will involve an intellectual critique of such flaws of the formats as the formerly illiberal reach of Blu-ray's catalogue.

The last "real" part is about the transition in the late 2000s and early 2010s from hard copies to downloading and streaming, as well as a contrast to the former illegality of downloads, when DVD was in its prime. Another is the landmark process in which it revolutionized the manufacturing of television sets to conform to the age of super-enhanced interactivity.

In a nutshell, the concluding section will express not only how the process has changed, but also how it will probably keep changing. At the very end there will be a poetic conclusion to the presentation.

Track: Cultural and Educational Outreach

Length of presentation/talk: Approx. 25 minutes

Language of presentation/talk: English

Will you attend Wikimania if your submission is not accepted?: I would love to, but it would take a miracle if I were to afford the flight.

Slides or further information (optional)

Special requests: Only a Keynote presentation, no filmed

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