Nobody can deny that the ways of audiovisual consumption never stop evolving. By going from 2 to 5 screens, consumers change habits and have new demands. With the goal of 'giving an impulse to the development of native transmedia programmes as an answer to these demands', Orange launched an on-line blog a few weeks ago: Transmedia Lab. We met with Nicolas Bry, director of Orange Valley (an Orange subsidiary) to better understand their approach.

What is the difference between crossmedia and transmedia?

Nicolas Bry : we say transmedia when talking about a story told on different kinds of media (Internet, television, mobile phone, cinema,...). Each chapter of the story is specifically created for its medium and enriches the story.

The entry points in the story are multiple and participation in the story is key: notably on the Internet, the viewers can comment, share, suggest or make up sequels to the story. The transmedia system is the whole of the chapters which make up the story, their chronology and the 2.0 tools which accompany them (more information here). Crossmedia is more the spreading of the same content on different carriers.

What are the principal strategic priorities of transmedia?

N.B.: all media are involved, creativity also stems from the encounter of creators coming from different backgrounds, for example game developers and film makers.

Economically, the exposure of the story on different media can, for the announcer associated with the story, be a possibility to advance his brand name in a more subtle, intense, and perennial way. For the brands, the stakes are big.

Finally, there is the development outline bringing together the creators with the fan community who can interact with the story, modify it, propagate it,...

At the base, transmedia is an American phenomenon, are there any French examples which have adopted crossmedia?

N.B. : It's an emerging practice in the USA (Matrix, Dark Knight, Lost,...) and very emerging in France: Arte made a participative series using transmedia, Ubisoft creates video games and dives into the comic book universe, etc...

Is transmedia a real creative endeavour in itself or is it more like the end product of a marketing concept?

N.B. : One does not exclude the other, the creative side aims to create several stories, working with the specificities of each medium: we can first create a story on the web in the form of a participative game, then have a weekly series on TV with daily episodes on the mobile network (on mobiles we'll find f.e. extras on the television series about the past of the characters), then have an extension on the web by calling for sequels or for suggestions for season 2.

We notice that creativity is multiplied and at the same time the audience stays and is multiplied via the circulation or references between media, that's what we call good marketing!

Is it possible to do without transmedia today when making a standard media work (series or film)?

N.B. : I'd love to say that within a year or two, the question “what is the transmedia plan?” will be almost systematically asked when talking about a new fiction.