Participant Observations 17/7/18 - Motivations for VPN Use

While I was at the ANZCA conference a few weeks ago, I sat in on a presentation about Artificial Intelligence, and representations of it in the media. The presentation talked about texts like Westworld and Terminator, as well as some other films I hadn't heard of, or considered viewing, such as Ex Machina, and Blade Runner 2049.

Given my love for Westworld and representations of AI, I thought I'd see if I could find these other texts, and find out more about other versions of AI representations outside of Westworld.

Specifically, I looked up Ex Machina, Blade Runner, Blade Runner 2049, Terminator Genisys, and Futureworld.

I began by looking through ALL of the catalogs that I have access to - Foxtel, Netflix, Amazon Video, and all the FTA on-demand apps.

I could ONLY find Blade Runner 2049 on the Foxtel Now catalogue. I also found Ghost in the Shell there, which was also a nice find (Scarlett Johansson).

Even so, unable to locate many of the other titles, and not wanting to purchase another subscription to Stan or iflix or anything else, I felt I had no option but to download the content illegally. So I switched on the VPN and got the content I needed.

The VPN allowed me to step around the blocking of Pirate Bay in Australia, and the content was downloaded relatively easily. The quality was ok (720p). I could have downloaded 1080p content, but the file sizes are significantly larger. It was then just a matter of copying the file over to a USB and playing it on my gaming PC so I could watch them on a large monitor.

I think this supports various other observations in the literature and through primary sources of information, that if a person is faced with a situation where they can't get the content they want easily, even where a legal option would have been preferred, an illegal path will be taken.

I don't feel like a pirate, so much as frustration at not being able to legitimately get the content I wanted. Perhaps this is the 'trickster' mindset, but I think because of the overt and deliberate use of VPN and the aversion to paying for it, while I would still classify it as Informal Media use, is probably more at the 'pirate' end of the spectrum here.

Some other observations is that the exercise demonstrated to me how limited some of the catalogs are on subscription OTT services, and that the FTA catch-up apps basically have no movies on them at all, suggesting how limited the rights are to have movie titles for FTA's.

Finally, I think my interest in AI is obviously the ethical questions it raises, and the implications it has for mankind more broadly, such as notions of doom. Most of these texts are set in the future, and I really like the different versions of the future these texts portray, whether it be minimalist, technological, post-apocalyptic, or perverse.

Participant Observations 13/7/18 - AFL Live Pass Subscriptions & the 3MT shit-show

On Monday this week, my credit card was charged $89.99 for a purchase I didn't remember making. The description on the bank statement said NRL Live Pass, which I have never used, and had no recollection of subscribing to.

At first, I thought the charges might have been incurred when I used the AFL Live Pass in New Zealand to watch the Swans play Geelong. But I looked at the terms and conditions attached to the AFL Live Pass, and the only stipulation was that the AFL Live Pass couldn't be used overseas... So either NZ doesn't count as 'overseas' or this term and condition isn't enforced.

What followed was a protracted back-and-forth with Telstra. I also lodged a claim for incorrect charges with my bank to see if I could get the charges refunded.

Anyways, while I was waiting for Telstra to get back to me - and I should say that I thought their customer service was slightly better than I thought it would be, other than the fact that their call-centre operators always spoke in sometimes barely legible, and that as soon as 9pm rolled around, they completely shut down their customer service, despite the chat service supposedly being 24x7 - I found out that the $89.99 was billed to me from an old subscription.

So AFL Live Pass works like this. There are effectively three points where you can subscribe: 1) Through the AFL website, 2) Through the app, and 3) Through the marketplace of your phone (i.e., the iPhone App Store, or Google Play etc). Now, Telstra Mobile customers can get the subscription for free, but ONLY if they subscribe through the app on their phone (i.e., option 2 above).

I initially had a recurring AFL Live Pass subscription through the AFL website (i.e., option 1 above), which I paid for when I started the research, back in 2016. Then, when I became a Telstra Mobile customer at the start of this year - specifically for the purpose of getting AFL Live Pass for free - I signed into the subscription for AFL Live Pass on my new phone (i.e., option 2 above). Inadvertently, I believed that this 'new' subscription would supersede my old subscription. However, this doesn't automatically happen, and I didn't realise I had to manually unsubscribe from my old subscription in order to avoid the recurring charges. Hence the confusion when my 'old' subscription automatically renewed.

However, this does highlight a point made during one of my research interviews - that the duplicate and multiple subscriptions that are required to access content such as sports rights could motivate consumers toward pirate behaviour. While it didn't happen in this instance, it was incredibly frustrating, and I can easily see how such an outcome could occur.

So what happened? After using some colourful language to tell the Telstra case manager how disappointed I was, they said they would credit my phone account with $89.99. I also cancelled the claim for incorrect charges with the bank. So no refund, but still a better outcome than nothing. I've also deleted my duplicate account - at least I think I have. It does also raise another point about how obfuscating the how multiple subscriptions is, and how deliberately misleading it feels. Clearly this should be cleaned up, otherwise it leaves you with the impression (especially for cynics like me) that this is a deliberate ploy to catch unsuspecting consumers such as myself in the unnecessarily complicated web of subscriptions.

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The 3MT shit-show

On Tuesday this week I participated in the Three-Minute Thesis competition for our faculty. What a fucking catastrophe. I had rehearsed pretty consistently for about three days leading up to it, and had spend about twice that long preparing the script. So I had a pretty solid explanation of my research, a good slide, and was reasonably confident going in...

Then about halfway through the presentation, I forget my lines...

So, I managed to make it to the end, but of course, because I had a big delay in the middle, I ran out of time to finish all the points of the script. So I found the exercise humiliating and it completely shattered my confidence.

To make matters worse, I performed my presentation without any notes. Being first in the schedule meant that I didn't get to see anyone else present before me, and many of the other presenters had notes... So if I had see other students going before me with notes, I might have taken my own notes up with me, and had something to refer to when I forgot my lines. But I was so fucking embarrassed that as soon as the heats were over, I fled - I still have no idea who won. And to be honest, I'm not sure if I even fucking care.

At the end of the day, the only reason I undertook the whole fucking exercise was to have something to put on my progress report, but overall it took more time and effort than what I think was worth it. Bullshit.

Below is the script and the slide I used:

Think about some of the most iconic and controversial moments on Australian TV in the last 20 years: John Aloisi puts us into the World Cup. Cathy Freeman wins gold. Adam Goodes getting booed by AFL crowds.

Almost more than anything else sport reflects our culture and binds us together socially.

So imagine trying to have conversations about what these events mean culturally, if only 30% of us could see it.

Or imagine trying to enjoy these events socially with friends and family, if you could only watch it on a phone.

This is what I am researching – what are the tensions inside the culture industry of sport on television, and what are the implications for our culture because of those tensions?

Because you see, in an era when audiences are fragmenting, sport rights are an especially hot property.

Live sport draws large audiences together who watch simultaneously, and who can’t avoid the advertising in it.

This drives profits for broadcasters.

Did you know that for the last four years in a row, the highest rating TV show has been the AFL Grand Final? Or that on AFL Grand Final day, more than 90% of televisions switched on in Australia are tuned into the game?

So for sports like the AFL, it’s a sellers’ market.

And if left to market forces, sports will sell their rights to the highest bidder.

But nowadays, the highest bidder might be a telecommunications company or social media platform or a search engine, who deliver sport online, often on mobile devices.

As demonstrated by Optus during the World Cup, new broadcasters may not be equipped to deliver sport reliably.

Alternatively, if really important sport goes behind a paywall, people can be driven to piracy.

You might remember the guy who got into trouble with Foxtel, for pointing his phone at a pay-per-view broadcast of a boxing match and streaming it onto Facebook.

And because it takes funds away from people who produce content, piracy isn’t good for broadcasters, or the sports, or the people who just want to enjoy their sport.

You might say, “Shouldn’t the government to step in, and make the really important sport available to everyone?”

And you’d be right, except the regulation that’s supposed to do that is so outdated as to effectively be obsolete.

So, by using the AFL as a case study, and by interviewing executives from TV, sport, and the government, I am investigating these issues, many of which are uniquely Australian.

My findings will inform investment and policy decisions, in order to defend the richness of our culture.

Because as a cultural, socially bonding experience, no one wants to watch footy on their phone.

Participant Observations 8/7/18 - Streaming cutbacks and ANZCA recap

After going back to full-time study this year, and having my scholarship application denied, I've needed to look at a few ways to cut back on some expenses. Unfortunately, one of the ways I've had to cut expenses is through my streaming expenses.

The NBA League Pass was the first one to go. This was done mainly because of the size of it - about $240 per year. The reasoning was that, while I like the convenience of it, I don't use it enough to justify keeping it. Also, most of the good games are on ESPN, which I have through my Foxtel subscription anyway, so there was some redundancy that also made it unnecessary. I've also heard that League Pass will offer micro subscriptions next year, so for example, if a game is close, you can by a quarter for a small amount, like $4 or something.

I've also pared down my Foxtel Now subscription, by getting rid of the Documentaries pack, which saves about $10 a month. When I first purchased Foxtel Now, I wanted to mimic the service I had with the full Foxtel subscription, which included documentaries. However, the only reason I had the Doco pack was to watch Top Gear on the Discovery channel (which is now on Amazon). The only other time I would use the Doco pack was to watch the CI channel, for shows like Crimes That Shook Australia. Given those shows are now finished for the year, I feel I can cut the Doco pack, and then maybe pick it back up again when those shows return.

I will say that adding and removing packs was really easy to do online, although the changes I made did not seem to be immediately reflected in the app when I went back to it, even after refreshing the app. Cutting the Doco pack saves about $10 a month, or about $120 a year. If I need to make further cuts, I would say my Amazon Video subscription could go next, although that's only about $6 a month. I could also cut down my Foxtel Now subscription even further - I really only need a couple of channels other than Sports and the HD option, which are non-negotiable (like Showcase). Also, for some reason, I seem to be getting the Movies Pack in my Foxtel subscription. I went online to check that it wasn't included in my subscription by mistake, and it's not, so perhaps it's some promotion by Foxtel for this month??

ANZCA: The conference was held in Auckland this year, which was good, although I feel it wasn't as memorable this year compared to previously. Perhaps this was to do with the fact that there seemed to be less people attending this year. Perhaps this was because it was in New Zealand, or because there seemed to be a PR focus, or there weren't as many keynotes and the keynotes weren't that amazing. I also feel that, because I wasn't presenting at the conference, I wasn't really engaged as much. It's hard to stay focused in presentations when you're not on edge about your own. Being at the end of the semester, I was more or less treating the conference as a junket, and was virtually in holiday mode a lot of the time. However, I did make some good contacts, picked up a few good bits of information, had a really good chat with Brett Hutchins, and otherwise enjoyed the time there. I also am finding myself looking for opportunities to network, instead of staying with Newcastle people the whole time.