Lesson Element
Unit 6: Social media and globalisation
LO1: Understand how online and social media
products are used
LO3: Understand how global industries use
social media
LO4: Know how to plan and manage a social
media campaign
Understanding Wikinomics
Instructions and answers for tutors
These instructions cover the learner activity section which can be found on page 6. This
Lesson Element supports Cambridge Technicals Level 3 in Digital Media.
When distributing the activity section to the learners either as a printed copy or as a
Word file you will need to remove the tutor instructions section.
The activity
As part of the unit, learners will need to be introduced to theoretical concepts, such as
Wikinomics (Don Tapscott and Anthony Williams, 2006), that investigate the changes that
online technologies have made to the production and distribution of media products.
Tutors will use the core concept of Wikinomics to help scaffold learners’ understanding of
how online technologies and social media have changed contemporary distribution.
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This lesson element supports learners’ understanding of changes to global production and
distribution processes by investigating the theoretical concepts that underpin Wikinomics
and gives them the opportunity to apply these to real projects and media productions. This is
further developed when learners put this knowledge into practice by planning a social media
campaign to support the distribution of a new film release.
Suggested timings
Activity 1: 1 hour
Activity 2: 30 minutes
ABC – This activity offers an
opportunity for English skills
development.
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Activity 1: Understanding Wikinomics
Task 1
The tutor should begin by introducing learners to the four key principles of Wikinomics
(openness, peering, sharing, acting globally) and ask what they think each of the principles
means in relation to how the internet has changed the production and distribution of media
products.
This could be done as a starter to the lesson; the tutor could ask the learners to complete
Activity 1 in small groups. The learner worksheet includes key buzzwords that will help them
write a definition.
Task 2
As part of Activity 1, learners can be introduced to products and projects that have been
generated based on the principles of Wikinomics. The tutor could show learners the
following three case studies of Kickstarter projects:
 Veronica Mars movie http://www.cnbc.com/2014/03/12/kickstarter-funding-bringsveronica-mars-movie-to-life.html
 Reading Rainbow http://edition.cnn.com/2014/07/03/us/reading-rainbow-kickstarter/
 Pebble technology http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/mar/30/pebble-timesmartwatch-kickstarter-crowdfunding
Learners will then discuss the benefits of online distribution by applying the principles of
Wikinomics to the case studies.
Task 3
In order for learners to plan a social media campaign in Activity 2, they will need to be able
to link social media channels and terminology to the principles embedded in Wikinomics.
Leaners will need to recap the capabilities of the social media channels they have
investigated and then explain how they link to Wikinomics.
Learners will require:
 Access to the Wikinomics and Social Media handout
 Access to the internet to investigate the Kickstarter projects in Task 2.
Activity 1 requires learners to:
1. Define the four key principles of Wikinomics.
2. Identify the benefits of the principles of Wikinomics.
3. Identify how contemporary social media channels link to the principles of Wikinomics.
For Activity 1 learners will use the Wikinomics and Social Media handout throughout the
session.
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Answers to questions:
1. Openness means having an open attitude towards external ideas and resources. This
includes an open attitude to staffing, expansion and embracing innovative ideas as a
company. This includes crowdsourcing. Peering means collaborative work which
replaces hierarchical models. It means breaking down boundaries and giving volunteers
and amateurs a voice in the production and distribution process. Sharing is an extension
of collaboration and it includes sharing products, intellectual property and knowledge.
Acting globally involves embracing globalisation and ignoring ‘physical and geographical
boundaries’ at both the corporate and individual levels. This includes crowdfunding.
2. The benefits of Wikinomics are collaboration and breaking the traditional boundaries.
It gives users and audiences the opportunity to contribute and share. Learners can
apply examples of how it contributes to distribution of the outlined Kickstarter projects.
3. For this, learners will discuss how social media channels – such as Twitter, Facebook,
YouTube, Instagram etc that they have learnt about earlier in LO1 – can be used to
support the concepts of Wikinomics.
Activity 2: Planning a social media distribution strategy
For Activity 2, learners are required to create a social media distribution strategy across the
main four social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram) for a new teen TV
drama programme (see brief in Learner Activity). Learners are to think about how the
channels would work together to maximise distribution based on the principles of
Wikinomics.
Task 1
The tutor may want to expand on Activity 1 and go through the features of the main four
social media channels and the different ways in which they reach audiences and how
audiences interact with them. This will include reminding learners what platforms the
channels are accessed on. The tutor should encourage learners to use examples of real
media texts.
Task 2
The tutor is to inform the learners that the timescale for the social media campaign is three
months. Based on the brief, the tutor is to facilitate learners’ discussion as they devise ideas
for a social media distribution strategy to support the release of a new teen TV drama
programme. Learners will be guided to work in small teams and present ideas back to class.
The tutor will encourage learners to access the four main social media channels and look at
the way in which existing products to support ideas. The tutor will ask them to apply the
ideas of Wikinomics (sharing and peering) to support ideas about how audiences participate.
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Learners will require:
 Access to Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram.
Activity 2 requires learners to:
1. Recap on the features of the four main social media channels and how to access them.
2. Devise a suitable campaign that demonstrates understanding of how social media can be
used.
The tutor should check that learners are able to access the social media websites listed
above and inform them that others (such as Flickr, Tumblr, SoundCloud) can be utilised.
Learners could use screen grabs from, and written notes about, existing TV programmes to
support their ideas.
Answers to Activity 2
 Capabilities of Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube focus on the use of different levels
of audience participation and various uses of multimedia.
 Using YouTube and Facebook to distribute teaser trailers and trailers may be referenced.
Twitter and Instagram are likely to be seen by learners as means whereby actors can
communicate with fans to increase audience participation (and therefore sharing,
openness, acting globally). Other answers may include use of Twitter and Facebook to
leak plots, use of YouTube to promote behind the scenes and filming of the production.
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Lesson Element
Unit 6: Social media and globalisation
LO1: Understand how online and social media
products are used
LO3: Understand how global industries use
social media
LO4: Know how to plan and manage a social
media campaign
Learner Activity
Understanding Wikinomics
You will need to understand how online technologies and social media are used to aid the
production and distribution of media products. This lesson will introduce you to the basics of
Tapscott and Williams’ Wikinomics theory, which suggests ways in which new media
technologies, including social media, have changed the business model of how products are
distributed.
Your task is to:
1. Define the four key principles of Wikinomics.
2. Identify the benefits of the principles of Wikinomics.
3. Identify how contemporary social media channels link to the principles of Wikinomics.
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Activity 1: Understanding Wikinomics
In order for you to create a social media campaign in Activity 2, it is important that you
understand the benefits of online distribution and at the core of this the study of Wikinomics.
Task 1
Use the word showers in the table below to define each of the four concepts of Wikinomics.
Openness
Peering
Innovation
Collaboration
Crowdsourcing
Connectivity
Open attitude
User-generated content
Embracing ideas
Breaking down hierarchy of traditional
business
Sharing
Acting globally
Products
Globalisation
Ideas
Crowdfunding
Intellectual property
Breaking down boundaries
Emerging technologies
Expansion
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Task 2
Read about three of the most successful crowdfunded Kickstarter projects and answer the
questions below:
 Veronica Mars movie http://www.cnbc.com/2014/03/12/kickstarter-funding-bringsveronica-mars-movie-to-life.html
 Reading Rainbow http://edition.cnn.com/2014/07/03/us/reading-rainbow-kickstarter/
 Pebble technology http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/mar/30/pebble-timesmartwatch-kickstarter-crowdfunding
1. What principles of Wikinomics can be applied to the Kickstarter projects?
2. Why were the principles of Wikinomics beneficial to the projects and their distribution?
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Task 3
Write down what the following four most popular social media channels are used for and
then use the information from Task 1 and Task 2 to link them to the principles of Wikinomics
to show how they can be used to aid the marketing and distribution of media products.
Uses of Twitter
How Twitter links to the principles of Wikinomics
Uses of Facebook
How Facebook links to the principles of Wikinomics
Uses of Instagram
How Instagram links to the principles of Wikinomics
Uses of YouTube
How YouTube links to the principles of Wikinomics
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Activity 2: Planning a social media distribution strategy
Task 1
Using the table below, make notes on the main characteristics of YouTube, Twitter,
Facebook and Instagram, what platforms people access them on and how they have been
used to promote real film and TV programmes. You should reference your examples.
Social
media
Characteristics How it is
accessed/platform
capabilities
How the channel has been
used to promote real
media
YouTube
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
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Task 2
Using the brief below, you are to work in teams to devise a social media campaign that will
promote the new teen TV drama ‘New Life’. You are to utilise the capabilities of the four
major social media channels, writing timescales and what content you might put on them.
You can use real examples to support your choices. You will present ideas to the rest of the
class.
Brief:
Pointing Productions are a production company based in the UK and they make
programmes for the major commercial broadcasters. They want to promote the release of
their new online teen TV drama ‘New Life’, which will be available on ITV Player. ‘New Life’
is expected to generate interest from a variety of TV magazines and review websites. The
two lead actors are Letisha Lane and Jack Henshaw. They are at present unknown but both
were winners of casting competitions by Pointing Productions and have recently received
sponsorship deals with major sports drink ‘Excite Energy’ and there is going to be press
coverage and interviews leading up to the online launch with Heat and Now magazines and
breakfast TV.
You can use the table below to help you make notes on timescale and content.
Timescale
Month 1
Social media to be used
Ideas for content
Month 2
Month 3
Online launch
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