Lost in transition
Gert Pasman · 2011
Crossmedia communication, in which content is spread over multiple platforms and the user is required to cross over from one medium to another to acquire the full experience, has until now been mainly the domain of the marketing, game and entertainment industry. However, now that more and more 'serious' applications and services, such as online banking or multichannel shopping, are becoming distributed through multiple platforms as well as used at various times and locations, its specific characteristics are becoming increasingly relevant for other design domains as well. This paper will reflect on the process of designing crossmedia applications and services by describing experiences from teaching a course in crossmedia interaction design to industrial design students. It is argued that, in order to create seamless, interactive experiences, real crossmedia design should go beyond a pragmatic mix of the principles and characteristics of the design disciplines that constitute the individual platforms.