An evaluation of the “cord-cutting” phenomenon, a viability study of virtual reality in sports and video entertainment, and an international analysis of over-the-top video services were the topics of the three winning entries of this year’s Media Management Association (MMA) Awards.

Samantha Ulin, majoring in Media Management and minoring in Public Relations, Psychology, and Marketing, won first place for her paper, Cord-Cutting: An Analysis of the Cable-Quitting Phenomenon.Her paper reviewed the relationships among the cord-cutting trend and traditional multichannel video programming distributors (MVPD), over-the-top services (OTT), and consumers.

The second-place paper, A Survey of Virtual Reality Applications,was authored by Dana McGeehan who pursues a double major in Media Management and History. She concluded that virtual reality (VR) technology was less viable in video entertainment than in sports, due to a lack of standards for VR content and the absence of a uniform mode of distribution.

Kailin Chen, majoring in Media Management and minoring in Entrepreneurship, compared OTT services in North America, Europe, and Asia, and found that, despite major differences in subscription video on demand (SVOD) services and OTT mobile applications across countries, usage was increasing across the board. Her paper was titled Similarities and Differences in Over-The-Top Video Services Across Countries.

All winners received a plaque at the 69th Annual Student Media Awards in May 2018. To read more about the Media Management Association Awards, please visit http://com.miami.edu/projects/media-management-association-awards-2018.

The Media Management Association (MMA) is a student-run University of Miami association that encourages students to expand their knowledge of the media industry through interactions with media professionals. A primary function of the organization is to invite local, regional, or even national speakers to share their insights about different aspects of the media business with the MMA members. Speakers have included TV sales managers, programming executives, and media entrepreneurs. MMA officers are elected every fall to lead the organization. There are no dues to become an MMA member, and all events are free. Students interested in joining the MMA or seeking more information should send an e-mail to Winston Warrior, lecturer, at ww@miami.edu.