Communication and Culture

Abstract This paper argues that locative media studies offers much broader insights on the logic of new media than is currently espoused. Media scholars have largely restricted the analysis of locative technologies to hand-held and immersive gadgets and experiences. I argue for an expanded theorization of the “locative”, one that develops a broader understanding of the conditions of networking of new media platforms, users, and content.

This article investigates the impact that the initial financialization of the Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company (Marconi) had upon its core business model, its relationship with its workers, government, and the bourgeoning investor class (1897–1905). Drawing upon primary sources from the Marconi corporate archives at the University of Oxford, the article investigates how the company used the new financial disclosure requirements of the day to deploy a compelling publicity campaign for wireless communications.

This commentary offers some lessons learned from recent attempts by the author to produce and fund documentary films in the university setting. The article pays particular attention to how crowdfunding can be utilized by first-time media producers. RESUME Ce commentaire propose quelques leçons apprises par l'auteur à la suite de tentatives récentes de réaliser et de financer des documentaires dans un milieu universitaire. L'article porte une attention particulière à la manière dont les néophytes en matière de production audiovisuelle peuvent recourir au sociofinancement.

The Canadian media landscape is changing at an unanticipated pace, catching public and private broadcasters off-guard and ill equipped to meet the changing demands of the market. This is placing significant strain on the regulator’s existing approach to new media regulation. Since 1999, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has employed a policy of non-regulation—or as I will argue in this paper, a policy of non-policy regarding new media broadcasting undertakings (NMBUs). While NMBUs cast a wide net in terms of what we would classify under this term, its most widely known proponents—“over-the-top”  (OTT) providers like Netflix Inc., Hulu, Apple TV, and countless others are taking the lion’s share of the criticism and concern in Canada by broadcasters and social groups like ACTRA, and the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA). This paper will provide an environmental scan of the existing approach to new media regulation in Canada by examining The Broadcasting Act, the New Media Exemption Order (NMEO), and the OTT Fact-Finding Mission (and results). This exploration will identify existing policy gaps, provide a history of the regulatory model, and highlight a brief case study on the Office of Communications (Ofcom) in the United Kingdom that has adopted an umbrella regulatory model that may be useful when exploring new options for new media policy in Canada. Finally, it will identify some existing roadblocks for undertaking such a policy review by looking specifically at the legislative confines of The Broadcasting Act.