Oh dear! I saw a news item on the ABC recently that revealed what I fear will be the future of work, and will spell the end of institutions like the public service as we know it. Hi tech corporations signing up workers all across the globe to bid for piecemeal pieces of data work, which they complete online from their own home, for a set fee. This will be a boon for greedy employers and a bloody nightmare for unions. The average worker will be competing with millions of workers across the globe, all desperate to undercut each other for a contracted short term job, and the prize will go to the lowest bidder.
On a related tangent, it has come to my attention in recent times that the impact of social media and out ever advancing technologies has witnessed the creation of a large number of new kinds of full time jobs that never existed before the 21st century
These are the kind of jobs that make old gits (like me) snort with derision and disbelief, and say things like, ‘Oh fuck off, you’re not telling me people actually fucking pay you to do that?’ Too whit, I’m starting a little blog series here called – Get the fuck outta here, that’s your actual fucking job?
So here we go with unbelievable job No. 1.
PROFESSIONAL ONLINE GAMER
Right, so according to an article I read in the Guardian online, there is a video game streaming site called Twitch, on which, people actually pay other people to watch them play video games. Lots of people. I kid you not, and there is big money involved. Here’s a link which is not the Guardian link, this is from The Verge, but nonetheless talks about the same issue:
So as incredulous as it seems, there are three main reasons why people are prepared to pay to watch other people play video games, and if you think this is a stupid idea, I have only one word for you – Gogglebox.
Anyhow, the reasons are –
To get tips on which new games to buy – makes sense. Online computer games are incredibly popular with almost anyone in the world who isn’t me. I like to spend my spare time writing horror stories and making bugger all money, call me old fashioned. So gamesters, who are mostly but not exclusively young, need to know the best, the coolest and the most cost effective games to purchase.
They like to follow a personality – sure the cult of personality and the notion of celebrity is everything these days. The world is filled with vacuous celebs who don’t actually have any talent or produce anything (cough Kardashians) but at least these guys and gals have got a skill. When you couch it in terms of following a personality to admire and learn from their skills in their chosen profession, it kind of makes sense. It is not at all different from following a sporting personality and admiring their skills at their chosen sport. We all admire what they can do, and we desire to emulate them, and we will pay good money to watch them. I can understand this sentiment.
So people put money into an online account for their preferred gaming personality, or they subscribe to follow that personality. Some of them make a little, but some of them make a fortune. Some of these people have given up their full time jobs to become professional gamers. I also read elsewhere that a lot of young women are getting into it, and that some of them might use their looks to attract fans. Camera set at certain angle, wearing certain outfits (think cleavage), etc. Although I also understand that there is an official code to stop this industry morphing into the sort of web cam action you might find in the porn industry.
Which takes me back to an incident I observed walking through my city from an A League soccer match a year ago. The game drew 10,000 fans into a stadium that holds 20,000. Walking past a major pub, I saw hundreds of Asians in there yelling and cheering. I stuck my head in, and they appeared to be watching an online video game. It occurred to me, Asians mostly love soccer. Why aren’t they up the road at the sports ground rather than in here, cheering on a video game? As I said, it’s not a lot different to following a sport.
Finally, they simply like to watch and learn from the skills of the experts. Again, this is no different to sports. We all want to watch and learn from the best, and we will pay for the privilege. Gamers want to learn new tactics and how to beat certain games at a point they might be stuck on themselves. Gamers can even offer coaching sessions, like pro sportspeople.
So there’s my first episode of – Get the fuck outta here, that’s your actual fucking job? Although in this case I’m not shaking my head like an old timer and getting really annoyed and uptight. I can see how and why this one is a thing. It makes perfect sense to me.
http://mashable.com/2014/08/25/what-is-twich/#D.k6YnZggPqY
Fergisms 