The very start of the term motion graphics is disputed in a way that some see it stretching as far back as the 1800s, but the term could very have been coined when John Whitney founded the company Motion Graphics Inc. The most significant pioneer of course could be argued to be Saul Bass with his work on the title sequences on films such as Vertigo
Psycho (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tek8QmKRODw)
and North by Northwest (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAmem5wVOUU)
Of course this isn't what is modernly known as motion graphics. It never really took on until the introduction of computer generated motion graphics.
At this time computers were still very expensive and hard to use. Motion graphics was still on the rise though and continued to bloom out of control. The draw of course being that it was a lot easier to create a very flashy expensive looking sequence without actually spending that much in TV and film terms. Visual effects also took off with the integration of compositing video. Anything that would be too dangerous of costly or simply impractical could be digitally created to look real.
In today's modern productions there are countless examples of motion graphics and visual effects filling our screens. Simple panel shows like Mock the week have a very flashy yet relevant title sequence. These visuals mixed with the very catchy music into make the brand instantly recognisable.
Visual effects can also be seen a lot on our screens, and not just from obvious examples like the huge blockbuster Avatar. The simple televised drama John Adams, centred around the birth of the United states is heavy in its visual effects (http://www.wimp.com/youcan/). Visual effects can be seen in all kinds of places. There isnt a modern day DVD title released without a flashy interface made for pure eye candy for the consumer. There is alot of work goes into every aspect of motion graphics with a multitude of layers taking all kinds of twists and turns.
There are of course alot of technical issues involved with making these flashy animated things. There is the fraerate to consider, get the wrong and it just wouldnt look right. Which could be a problem when making animations and motion graphics for overseas. In the Uk we use the PAL format with its 25 frames per second, whereas in america NTSC is the main output, with its frame rate weighing in at 29.97. As well as this, with the boom of HD (High Definition) productions, creating believeable visual effects has never been harder to do. Resolution plays a massive part, making things look out of focus the whole time or just plain wrong. This means everything takes alot longer to work with, with computers only just being able to keep up with the demand of quality. Sending these files around can also be an issue slowing production. With the high quality comes high filesize, which means the correct compression is vital in creating the best quality with the smallest possible file size.
So we know what they are used on but what we don't know yet is how they are produced. Well there are a multitude of software packages that can create amazing results in the right hands. For motion graphics, especially for animations and other simple things we could use the widespread Flash software from adobe. This is pretty easy to get your hands on and pretty easy to use. This of course is very basic, and designed for the home user and of course for websites and other online content. For the more professional user there is of course the major player, and most likely the most used in the industry. I am course talking about the huge After effects. This is a very powerful program that can be used by anyone who afford it. The majority of the visual effects and motion graphics on TV and film, you could safely bet, has been produced using this program. This is to say this isn't the only software used. For the mac user there is Final cut pro, another huge program that is used with video editing. 
If you can get yourself really good at using these kinds of software you can actually make a good living in this field. There is a few companies that you can work for, there is never too many people working on these kinds of productions because of how widespread it is used. There is a multitude of jobs available in this field, too many to list, but here's the link for you to check it out (http://motionographer.com/jobs/).
So there you are, a small insight into the world of visual effects and motion graphics. There is a huge demand for motion graphics or visual effects. If you are thinking about getting into this kind of profession then I suggest getting some training first. There is a lot of help online in the form of tutorials. If you are wanting to get some training I suggest the great guys at http://www.videocopilot.net/ for some top notch turtorials.
