[ 3. The Channel 4 Site | Skins ]

[ The Channel 4 Skins Section www.channel4.com/skins ]

The Skins section of Channel 4’s website is very different to the rest of the website. As it is supposed to be specifically directed at the target audience, the content is very colloquial and often personally addresses the audience, especially in the character profile pages. This makes the audience feel more friendly towards the characters as it seems as though the characters can open up to them.
Although some of the layout is different, the page still retains the menu at the top containing the different section of the website mentioned earlier. Some of the available features within the Skins section include synopses of past episodes, forums, unseen Skins episodes free to download, episodes available on 4oD [ 4 on Demand ] and most strikingly, a competition page to design Skins logos, films, character costumes and music.

[ In Detail ]
As you arrive at the site, you are immediately greeted by a splash page which specifically lists the content of the site and the certain age restrictions [ 18…oops ] and shows any one of about 8 promotional images and still looks stylised to the Skins website content. The age restriction seems innocent enough, although it could be argued that it also acts as a lure inside, as the perverse nature of the target audience, i.e. teenagers, draws them to look around. Inside, there are 9 links to various sections inside the mini-site. In a cunning pun, the skin [ skin ] is always a modified version of a Logo Entry winning design. The competition was held a few weeks before the show went on air. The competition was open to everyone and served to get the audience interested in the show and participating before it went on air, to build up hype and give the audience a sense that they played a small part in the creation of the show. The standard of entry, however, may have put some people off entering as only the few with an esoteric knowledge of image, video and music editing software such as Abobe Photoshop or Adobe (Formerly Macromedia) Flash really stood a good chance of winning, thus cutting out a large proportion, though not all of the target audience. That said, it in turn raises awareness and interest in these sorts of technologies and new technology as a whole, aiding Channel 4 in other senses as those young filmmakers, for example may want to try their hand in another aspect of filmmaking and participate in FourDocs, etc. This is a good example of democratisation, interactivity, vertical integration and personalisation to a small extent. This also serves as online surveillance as Channel 4 can track the habits, taste and likes of their target audience and target them more accurately and with more precision. This incredible display of democratisation explains why Channel 4’s fans are becoming so loyal – they feel included. On top of this, there are forums which allow for fragmentation and online surveillance, links to MySpace which has become largely integral to targeting the younger generation, sign-ups for free stuff such as free new music downloads and unseen skins episodes, which add to the already existing TV-aired storyline.
The Skins site shows that Channel 4 is dedicated to keeping in touch with its loyal fanbase and likes to hear their ideas and take them on board. This lets the fans know that they are valued by Channel 4 and keeps them interested and devoted to Skins, if not the rest of Channel 4.

[ 2. The Channel 4 Site | Entertainment ]

[ The Channel 4 Entertainment Section www.channel4.com/entertainment ]

The entertainment section of the Channel 4 website is visited by thousands of users every day, each whom use it for their own needs and experience their own take on the wide range of services available in this subsection of channel4.com.
The homepage for Entertainment is in many ways very similar to that of the main site for Channel 4. The bar at the top is the same, it retains the same layout although the bar at the side is to navigate further into Entertainment and also the links dotted around are also more specialised to deal with pages inside of the Entertainment sector.

[ In Detail ]
Under this division, there lie many subdivisions under the umbrella of Entertainment. Most of these are not strictly to do with Channel 4 matters, but are often about what is happening in entertainment generally at the time. Such subdivisions include FilmFour, Music, Games, 4Laughs, and many more.
Each of these include their respective content, although each is very interactive with the audience and maintain the democratic approach that I mentioned in my previous post. Features like uploading an unsigned band profile, in the chance that your band might raise awareness for itself or even get signed, or seeing the sneak-peeks of the latest films out in the cinema or DVD or taking part in a worldwide quiz for a pair of hair straighteners or a Nintendo Wii, there is something for everyone.
Most of these subdivisions contain RSS feeds, interactive forums which allow for audience diversification and also free podcast downloads, where the audience can keep up with their favourite subject in small audible chunks like a non-linear radio station [ podcast ]. A podcast sets itself apart from other digital audio formats on the web because of its ability to respond to RSS Feeds and download automatically with near-immediacy. However, the audience need not subscribe to a feed in order to listen to Podcasts, as they are often available for streaming and straight downloads, which can later be uploaded to regular MP3 players or indeed an iPod for portable consumption.
All of these cutting-edge and fast-developing NMT’s all contained within the Entertainment section of Channel 4’s website give the audience a sense that Channel 4 cares about the quality of consumer experience, getting to become closer to the audience and keeping up with the industry to present an up-to-date and modern front.

[ 1. The Channel 4 Site | Homepage ]

[ The Channel 4 Website www.channel4.com ]

The Channel 4 site offers thorough programme information, information on an eclectic range of interests within Channel 4 and beyond, TV listings and scheduling information, news, a large entertainment section and various other audience related and interactive activities for a global audience which grants a massive reach for potential consumers of Channel 4’s products and services.

The website offers the massive audience of Channel 4 and all of its spin-off channels a chance to immerse themselves further into the channel as a whole, one specific program or their interests, guided by the extremely talented editors and according to the demographic group.

[ In Detail ]

The homepage has static panels along 3 sides of the page, with links ranging from the site content, to site maps and contact information. The panel on the left is the largest and the main navigator panel. This panel contains the main links: Watch Online, TV, Entertainment, Lifestyle, News, Documentaries and Interact. Under these, there are smaller categories within the links themselves, for quick navigation. This makes it more enticing for the audience and looking through the website doesn’t feel like such a chore.

The dominance of the homepage is entitled “Today on channel4.com” and features a slideshow of the main feature of the day such as FourDocs, Channel 4’s “broadband documentary service” which allows anyone to record and upload their own documentary on an open range of topics to be viewed and rated by other viewers from around the world which is a good example of democratisation. It is one part of the 4Talent initiative to get more young and prospective hopefuls into the extremely competitive industry. This feature, which is clearly highlighted from the homepage shows off to the audience about how innovative Channel 4 is and how highly it respects the views and products of the audience who show the same in return. The technologies involved in this and other areas of the website are very wide-ranging. Apart from the internet, being the overriding new technology in this instance, there are various peripheral technologies which combine to make the Channel 4 website as impressive as it is. One of these new technologies is RSS [ Really Simple Syndication RSS ]. RSS is a web feed format which publishes frequently updated websites and online content, such as blogs, news feeds or podcasts, such as the FourDocs blog or the Games page, which features a frequently updated page of console and free online games as voted for by both the public and nominated by the employees at the 4Games department within Channel 4. The rest of the homepage consists of various different tasters of the other categories of the site: News, Entertainment, etc. and also the main television feature of the night on any one of the numerous channels owned by Channel 4. Clicking on one of these links may bring you to a page report on the item, some background reading, games, quizzes and links spanning the website on issues related to the link followed.

Outside adverts from paying companies are also placed on the homepage, on the right. These are often internet or technology-related and are specifically targeted at the early-mid 20’s demographic.

The Channel 4 website is a good example of both democratisation and true connectivity and interdependency with the audience and shows a great deal of interactivity both on, and off-site.