Apple’s Final Cut software: intoxicating future or impending doom for media workers?
Monday, December 01, 2008 - 03:30 PM EST"Workers in the media industry face either an intoxicating future or one filled with doom because of Apple's Final Cut software and unifying digitisation removing layers of complexity from their work. That's the theme coming out of a tapeless media summit in held last week in London's Soho, a centre for media production and post-production work," Chris Mellor reports for The Register.
"As the cost of video-editing equipment has come down and the capabilities of commodity server-based software, such as Apple's Final Cut Pro, have increased layers of complex older technology, with machines costing hundreds of thousands, even millions of pounds, being rendered redundant. The people in the industry whose work and skills are based on this equipment face job destruction. They might as well be working in analogue camera film developing and printing. Just as digitisation swept away those jobs and trades so the same is happening in video production and editing," Mellor reports.
"There was some concern about Apple's dominant position, but most people present reckoned Apple had the better tools and that was that," Mellor reports.
"The video editors present were largely positive about all this - and why not? What driver or transport manager wouldn't like cheaper, faster vehicles that could do more and replace whole sets of specialised, more expensive vehicles? Just don't expect the drivers and mechanics of the replaced vehicles to be ecstatic about the prospect," Mellor reports. "Apple's dominance for them is just one big threat and the final cut is likely to be their jobs."
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: We don't care whether Mellor is extolling the virtues of Apple's impact on the world of nonlinear editing or if he's just a Luddite. The fact is, it doesn't matter; as with everything else, unstoppable progress marches on. Those who who are proficient and can adjust will continue to have their jobs and those who are deemed superfluous will not.
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