New media agencies deal with modern technological advances in the advertising and communication market. Companies working in this field tend to deal primarily with digital platforms, computerized software and networking principles to achieve their goals. The climate of the industry is a constantly changing one, with new advancements being implemented on a regular basis. The concept of new media emerged as a viable market during the personal computer and Internet explosion of the late 20th century.
Media relations in the traditional sense were based upon the ability of an agency to achieve success through print and analog communication techniques, such as radio and television. With the rapid expansion of the digital market in the 1980s, primarily video games and the birth of the Internet, a new type of media began to emerge. New media agencies adapted to the digital technology, exploring the new facets and possibilities of the mediums.
New media agencies utilize a number of factors that highlight the unique nature of the industry. Geographic distance is transcended by the fact that the digital information can be distributed nearly anywhere on the planet. The volume of communication is much larger, as digital technology is generally temporary. This allows the medium to focus on a number of constantly changing advertising and marketing techniques.
The speed of information transmission over markets such as the Internet allows for nearly instantaneous distribution. Various interactive features allow consumers to personally choose the market in which they become exposed. In addition, new media agencies can overlap and connect various forms of information to create a fully established campaign with a variety of influences.
Since the 1990s, the new media arena has been at the forefront of globalization. As the post-Cold War era world emerged, new media companies were able to enact a number of advancements in technology that spread quickly from market to market. Essentially, new media agencies became the promoters of a “global village” where advertising, entertainment and functionality was merged into one type of medium. Companies and individuals working across the world were now able to communicate and spread information to counterparts in other parts of the globe. Advertising moved into a viral concept with page links and pop-ups. New media agencies are the primary organizations in the business of implementing and monetizing this concept.
The future of new media agencies is an ever-changing environment. Continued proliferation of video games and virtual communities has created a market for interconnected media. These markets need a combination of images, music, video and games. By merging the entertainment value of these concepts with marketing, new media agencies are on the cusp of the continued expansion of technology.