Digital distribution facts for kids

Digital distribution is a way to get digital stuff like music, movies, video games, and e-books to you online. Think of it as getting content over the Internet instead of buying a CD, DVD, or a physical book. This means you don't need to go to a store or wait for something to be shipped!

This way of getting content became super popular in the 2000s. Faster internet connections made it easy to download or stream things. Big companies like Amazon Video and Netflix started offering lots of movies and shows online.

When you get content online, you can either stream it or download it. Streaming means you watch or listen to it right away without saving it permanently. It's like watching a video on YouTube. Downloading means you save the content to your computer or device. This lets you use it later, even if you don't have internet.

Special networks called content delivery networks help deliver content quickly. They make sure you can get your content fast and easily.

How Digital Distribution Changed Things

Online distribution has really changed how we get our entertainment and information. It has affected music, movies, books, and video games.

Music

When online music started, sales of physical CDs went down a lot. This was partly because it was easy to get music for free, even if it wasn't allowed. Music companies had to change how they did business.

A big change was the creation of MP3 files. These files made songs much smaller, so they could be downloaded quickly. A typical song might be 30 megabytes on a CD, but only 3 megabytes as an MP3. This made sharing music online much faster.

Moving online helped many artists. It made it cheaper to share their music with fans around the world. New artists found it easier to get noticed. Also, online music stores let people buy just one song instead of a whole album.

Downloading single songs became very popular. But then, music streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music became the main way people listen to music. Now, streaming makes up most of the money in the music industry.

Videos

Today, many TV shows and movies are available online. You can find them directly from the people who made them or from services like YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video. These services let you watch content on your computer, phone, tablet, or smart TV.

Sometimes, when you buy a Blu-ray or DVD, it comes with a "Digital Copy." This means you also get an online version of the movie that you can watch on your devices.

Books

Books have also gone digital! Electronic book readers like Kindles let you carry many books on one device. You can also click on links in e-books to find more information.

Companies that sell books have had to change to keep up with digital books. Those that adapted have seen their sales grow. For example, some publishers found that their sales went up a lot after they started selling e-books.

Some book publishers, especially for science fiction and fantasy, started selling e-books without "digital rights management" (DRM). DRM is a technology that tries to stop people from copying or sharing digital content. Publishers found that removing DRM didn't hurt their business.

Video Games

Online distribution has changed the video game industry a lot. Gabe Newell, who created the digital game store Steam, explained it well. He said that in the past, making games was risky because physical copies cost a lot to produce. Now, with digital distribution, game makers can try new ideas and make changes easily.

This new way of selling games has helped smaller game makers, called indie developers, and people who create game "mods" (changes to existing games). They can now sell their unique games and creations more easily.

Since the early 2000s, many digital game stores have appeared for PC games. Some popular ones include Steam, Origin, Epic Games Store, and GOG.com. These stores offer different features. For example, some let you resell games you've bought, while others don't. Some have strict DRM, and others don't use it at all.

Digital distribution is also better for the environment. Making physical discs and their cases uses a lot of plastic, gas, and water. Digital games don't need these materials.

Challenges

Even with all its benefits, digital distribution has some challenges. Sometimes, content comes in different formats that don't work on all devices. This can mean you need to convert files or use specific devices.

Streaming services also have some downsides. You usually need a constant internet connection to use them. Also, you might not be able to save the content or move it to other devices. Sometimes, the owners of the content can decide to remove it or limit access.

See also

In Spanish: Distribución digital para niños