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November 23, 2009
The Dumbing Down of Content...and the Opportunity It Creates.
*
In the November issue of Wired magazine is an article titled "The Answer Factory: Demand Media and the Fast, Disposable, and Profitable as Hell Media Model" which describes the business model of Demand Media. Where other publishers create content then try to sell enough ads or subscriptions to help pay for it, Demand Media turns the model upside down.
At Demand Media, they use technology to scan the web to determine what people are searching and what ads on those search results might pay. They then commission content (through an army of freelancers) at rates to match the forecast revenue. It is infinitely granular, highly targeted, and apparently....profitable as hell.
Most people who I have referred the article to immediately recoil. "Who would read that junk?" "Their content is terrible!" "That will lead to two tons of trash on the Web".
Exactly.
And in that trash is the opportunity. As citizen journalism, user-generated content, and automated production engines like Demand Media churn out content by the pound, the need for trusted filters (channels, editors, call them what you want!) grows. Sifting through the junk to find the real gems is getting harder, not easier. So, as is the norm in business, the pendulum swinging away from publishers will likely begin to swing back in their favor.
The difference is that where publishers once had an advantage because they controlled distribution which was costly, now everyone has access to affordable distribution. Thus, bloggers like Chris Brogan or David Pogue (who also happens to work for the New York TImes) who have legions of followers, are in fact well-suited to fill the role of "trusted editors".
In similar fashion, ethical corporations can also fill that gap. Companies like Northwest Mutual or Blue Cross Blue Shield, who have worked hard to cultivate trusted relationships with customers, are in a terrific position to capitalize on the need for information filters, and in so doing to strengthen/expand their business reach.
So. from the wreckage of the publishing industry will emerge a new landscape for "publishing", and where once only a few powerful individuals like Rupert Murdoch held sway, the future will be likely be more democratic...and much more personal.
*Image: Copyright Wired Magazine, November 2009
Posted by jcioban at November 23, 2009 10:10 AM
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