Multimedia is a large and growing industry that combines the state's premier industries of
computer technology, entertainment and software services. California is the natural center
for this fast-evolving industry as the inventor, producer and user of many of the
components essential to multimedia. Multimedia is interactive presentation that combines
digital video, sound and text delivered via Internet, CD-ROM disc or interactive
television. Multimedia is changing the way people are entertained, educated and receive
information. The video component includes illustrations, animation and photos. Sounds
include speech as well as sound effects. The complexity of the presentation requires
advanced computers and software, both for production and reception. The industry is
important to the California economy as a "knowledge-based", high-wage industry
with a high value added during manufacture. Most multimedia firms are based in the Los
Angeles and San Francisco Bay areas. Hollywood provides the content, the Silicon Valley
provides the technology, and the combination provides a synergy that is not duplicated
anywhere in the world.
There is no set definition of the multimedia industry. This high-technology industry
primarily makes games and educational programming for video-game machines, CD-ROMs for
personal computers and programming for the Internet. Elements from television, motion
pictures, computers and telephony are delivered through telephone lines, fiber optic cable
or satellites to present images, sound and data.
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geographically - placements of the industry
- Around the San Francisco Bay Area are the high-technology centers of Silicon Valley and
Multimedia Gulch. The San Francisco Bay area is better known for the computer, software
and video game portion of multimedia.
To the east, the Sacramento area has an expanding electronics industry cluster. The
companies in that area include Hewlett-Packard, Intel and NEC.
Southern California is the international leader in motion picture and television
production. It is also the center of the creativity in writing story lines. These two
major activities have generated a synergy that makes California the center for multimedia.
Importance
for the Economy
California is home to more than 16 percent of the nation's multimedia establishments
and 21 percent of the employment. The big leaders are motion pictures and computers with
42 percent and 29 percent, respectively, of the nation's total multimedia firms.
California also builds the satellites to send information around the world, and to receive
the data on home satellite dishes.
Multimedia jobs pay a high average wage, ranging from $34,000 in cable television to
$65,000 for prepackaged software. People with specialized skills in computer-generated
animation for movies can expect jobs paying around $75,000.
Employment is more difficult to determine. All of the industries listed previously
employ a combined total of about 580,000 people. However, these industries vary as to
multimedia activity. Manufacturing of prepackaged software, home satellite antennas, and
computers, including peripherals, have an especially large California representation and
are highly influenced by the multimedia industry.
Victory
of Entertainment
Everyone with a CD-ROM computer game or access to the Internet is enjoying the benefits
of multimedia. Movie producers use multimedia capabilities to create computer-generated
special effects. Doctors in remote areas of the nation use multimedia to send interactive
video via satellite and microwave transmission to medical specialists in urban areas.
Multimedia allows real time images of news events to be beamed into the home from
countries around the world.
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California multimedia companies have been the creators of some of the most popular
computer games ever. Broderbund created "Myst", in which the player explores a
3-D island, and "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?", a game that teaches
geography. Virgin Interactive Entertainment released "7th Guest", an interactive
movie combining live action characters with high-resolution 3-D backgrounds. Virgin also
released three interactive CDs based on Disney's "Lion King",
"Aladdin" and "The Jungle Book". LucasArt continues the "Star
Wars" story with "Rebel Assault".
Selected
Major Companies
California is home to numerous producers of multimedia industry components, from video
games to satellites as the following listing illustrates.
- Company
|
- Multimedia Product
|
- Location
|
| Hewlett-Packard Co. |
computers |
Palo Alto |
| Satellite Technology Mgmt. |
satellite/microwave equip. |
Irvine |
| Silicon Graphics |
special effects computers |
Mountain View |
| Sun Microsystems Inc. |
"Java" Internet enhancement |
Mountain View |
| Macromedia Co. |
multimedia, graphic, video software |
San Francisco |
| California Microwave |
communications systems |
Sunnyvale |
| Broderbund Software |
games, "edutainment" publishers |
Novato |
| Virgin Interactive Entertainment |
CD-ROM games |
Irvine |
| LucasArt Entertainment Co. |
CD-ROM games |
San Rafael |
| Spectrum HoloByte |
PC entertainment software |
Alameda |
