May 25, 2009 117 Comments

The Next Media Company

We talk a lot about what it’s going to take to keep The Boston Globe and The Wall Street Journal and all the other papers of the world alive. We talk about the future of publishing books and magazines, and what it’s going to take to change the music industry. Let’s stop for a minute.

If you were given a few million bucks from a venture capitalist to build a media company, what would that look like?

Not so easy, eh? So, I’m going to think about it, but then, it’s your invitation to think about it, too. Because some of what you and I come up with here might be useful, don’t you agree? Maybe we’ll figure out where some of these companies might hop next, or maybe we’ll just invent something new.

The Next Media Company Manifesto

Here’s what I believe might need to be true about the next media company:

Stories are points in time, but won’t end at publication. (Edits, updates, extensions are next.)
Curators and editors rule, and creators aren’t necessarily on staff.
Media cannot stick to one form. Text, photos, video, music, audio, animation, etc are a flow.
Everything must be portable and mobile-ready. (Mobile devices need to evolve here, too).
Everything must have collaborative opportunities. If I write about a restaurant, you should have wikified access to add to the article directly.
Advertising cannot be the primary method of revenue.
In-line content marketing, clearly delineated/disclosed/explained is one revenue stream. One of many.
Contributors come in many shapes: onstaff, partner (how pros like TechCrunch link to Washington Post), guest (for love and glory only), and conversational come right to mind. Who else?
Value-add services are another revenue stream. Why not book hotels and flights from my travel magazine directly? Why not buy how-to information on marketing from Ad Age or FastCompany?
Collaboration rules. Why should I pick the next cover? Why should my picture of the car crash be the best?
Everything is modular and linkable. Everything is fluid. Meaning, if I want the publication to be a business periodical, then I don’t want to have to read a piece about sports.
Paper isn’t dead: it’s on demand.
Do-it-yourself publishing is next for us all. At first.
We will all audition for mass physical distribution.
It won’t matter (mass physical distribution) to us, lots of the time.

What Else?

Am I way off here? Is this too Pollyanna? What makes sense? What’s just wrong? How far am I off from your perspective?

I welcome the conversation.

ChrisBrogan.com runs on the Genesis Framework

The Genesis Framework empowers you to quickly and easily build incredible websites with WordPress. Whether you're a novice or advanced developer, Genesis provides you with the secure and search-engine-optimized foundation that takes WordPress to places you never thought it could go.

With automatic theme updates and world-class support included, Genesis is the smart choice for your WordPress website or blog.

Find out more about the framework features
Check out the Genesis demo and the wide variety of child themes
See example designs in the Genesis design showcase

Become a StudioPress Affiliate

Kate

Chris, enjoyed the post. Agreed with almost all of it except this:

“Advertising cannot be the primary method of revenue.”

Advertising will get smarter – is getting smarter. Your new media company will target ads based on behavior and content that is absolutely relevant to the advertiser. Take it one step further and analyze the user, calculating their receptivity to the ad and automatically setting CPM etc.

Great post – thanks!
Pingback: The Next Media Company | chrisbrogan.com « Netcrema - creme de la social news via digg + delicious + stumpleupon + reddit
@sailorchick

I like a lot of this, but I have some questions. As stories won't end in publication, edits and updates will be the norm, how will the revisions be distinguished? A color code? How will the editors and curators be paid? How will the contributors be paid?

Of course everything should be multi-media, (linked) and multi-media accessible, that's a complete given, the real trick, how are we going to sync everything, with everyone?

Advertising is an evil, but a very necessary one. I don't like it, I just don't see a way around it. We have to establish ways of people getting paid, making a proper living. If we don't, this simply won't be viable as anything more than a hobby.
http://ariwriter.com Ari Herzog

I don't understand this bullet: “Everything is modular and linkable. Everything is fluid. Meaning, if I want the publication to be a business periodical, then I don’t want to have to read a piece about sports.” Can you elaborate?
Pingback: Twitter Highlights – May 25 « Blog. By Web Anna
Milton Pincus

Content remains king.
Jessica

Hi Chris, this is fascinating stuff, as these 100s of comments before mine also indicate. My initial question was to be about advertising as well, but I can see the debate/discussion on this point has already taken off so I will leave that.

My other question revolves around the idea of (please dont burn me at the stake for this) editorial control. Of course I believe that everyone should have wiki-access to add their thoughts on restaurants, and we should all be able to participate online. And I love the idea that stories will not be published, finished by some certain date, but rather will be constantly evolving stories. However, these stories that run in the mainstream media, ie New York Times in the US and the Times in the UK, have traditionally formed the first drafts of history books, our understanding of history, and subsequently, our understanding of current/future society as well.

If everything is fluid, evolving and wiki-able, we are, in a sense, creating a situation whereby history will also be recorded in a multi-media, multi-faceted way. All of this can be democratic, and egalitarian of course, but happens with hackers or just plain jerks?
Who will maintain editorial control and who has the right to maintain that control in the new media company? It might be one step too far to say this here, but in a sense, what will the understanding of reality be in a future where we can all participate in documenting the past?
Pingback: Come sarà l’editore di domani | TecnoDuo
http://www.burrellesluce.com/freshideas/?cat=87 Gail Nelson

Your “future vision” is fabulous contribution! In the whole “evolution of media debate” here are my concerns:

1. Truth: As a reader of many blogs, I have observed first-hand that “facts” — even basic numbers and stats – are often flat-out wrong. Whose job should it be to check those? The creator, or the editor? If someone adds to a story through a wiki, will anyone ensure the ongoing accuracy of the story? Is it the responsiblity of the editor?

2. Money: Who pays? The outcome of the debate between “information wants to be free” and “users need to pay a little bit” will shape the quality of the news and information in the future.
http://blog.gruden.com/ Mark Stanton

I think http://www.guardian.co.uk/open-platform/what-is…, http://www.openaustralia.org/ and http://www.whirlpool.net.au/ are all worth looking at in terms of new & effective ways of producing, consuming, distributing and organising information and adding considerable value in the process. If I had a few million I'd try to become an “authority hub” on one or more niche areas and provide a range of tools around which people congregate to share information on these topics.

Beyond advertising income could come from providing value added services or aggregate data or providing access to a focused user base via surveys or other market/social research.

Profitable? Maybe, maybe not..
http://www.fabulousphotogifts.co.uk/ Fabulous Photo Gifts

Hi Chris

A thought occurs reading your post (which I agree with by the way) – media could / should become a bit like the film 'Vantage Point'.

People will want to see the same story but from a different perspective (social comment) whilst others just want to see the pictures (video phone sharing – google maps etc).

Other will want more in-depth analysis (links to similar topics / people, event or location specific).

The next media company will be able to utilise all of these mediums and platforms (from twitter to youtube) to bring people the whole story or as much of it as they want.

Perhaps it's already here – just not collected in one place yet?

Jonathan.
http://strategicdigitalthinking.blogspot.com/ mark bjornsgaard

I feel its pretty simple

U2 make only 10% of their income from recorded music (the thing that most people think of as their “product”) – this is the model for media – experience lead monetization (what a great acronym!)

if the human being is experiencing something they value from the media – then they'll pay
how do the new media companies generate those experiences? data (as Tim O'Reilly says) – the book moneyball describes how Billy Beane did it for baseball – same for media – mine the data, look creatively at the data and a whole new world of opportunity appears

I challenge people to try it – take any media company you can think of – spend an hour with your team trying to figure out all the different data sets they “own” (from the sales of their products through to the temperature of their offices) – and then spend half an hour working out who would be interested in this data – and in what context

When you do this its pretty easy to see where value is
http://marketingexposed.net/ Catherine Maino

Good points and interesting comments. I've never been a newspaper reader…I was raised to turn on the radio and television as the vehicles used for information. My career has been in electronic media and watching the newspaper slowly decline is as if the end of a movie is obvious!

“Media cannot stick to one form”….absolutely on target for ALL media! The diversity of where and when to get the information you want demands multi-sources and forms. However utilizing “collaborative opportunities” is crucial. Those opportunities must link and feed off each other and yes, be fluid! But consistent!

“Advertising cannot be the primary method of revenue” without question. But advertising will, without doubt, be part of the plan. The one aspect that all mainstream media has got to get through its thick skull is specificity, personal relevance and a businesses niche! Quit trying to be everything to everyone and solve a specific problem!! Too much garbage and plastic promises. Tell me what makes you different and why I need you! We're talking the creative message people!
jimbursch

I'm not sure about the premise — that “media” companies will exist as such. I think they will disappear into the cloud.
Vicki

Great post, Chris!

I agree that value-added services — especially educational/how-to services — are a critical piece. I am in the final stages of discussions with a VC about an online news outlet that does just that — having educational content for each type of story. (And this is being applied to regular news, not just specialty magazines or industry-specific magazines. That means a heavy emphasis on JIT instructional design for the learning content.)

Whatever model comes out, it's important to remember to pay contributors and instructional designers for the content. A lot of proposals have various business models, but they involve using writers, photographers, illustrators, and designers for free. “Guest” is a loose term that could include a lot of people. When it comes to creative and writing talent, the old adage “You get what you pay for” holds true. I've definitely found this true in my business.
http://www.whitneyhoffman.com/ whitney

I agree entirely and wrote about that over on my blog http://www.whitneyhoffman.com/?p=642, knowing I'd take up too much space here. The new thing makes the old thing move over some, but doesn't destroy it entirely. I think, as Matt Mason might say, newspapers have to think about getting out of the paper and ink business and into the news business, as that's where their primary value is, just like music companies are in the music bsuiness, not the plastic disc business.
http://mattwilson.tv MattWilsontv

The thing with traditional media— the content is good.

I subscribe to way too many bad blogs–not everyone has the chops to make the good content.

These people get paid to write, they aren't just doing it for their health…Chris you've got a talent that you could get paid for (directly). Most other people just don't. Self publishing is a bit overrated, but I love that we are all sold the dream we can do anything as self starters.
Jhibel

When so much information is available so freely and immediately, how do you tell the good information from the bad information? In the “old media” you could generally assign some level of trust based on the source (i.e. the brand of the media outlet) because the top brands protected their value by verifying the information they published. Now the old media struggles between immediacy and accuracy. Maybe verification and trust work differently with new media. Instead of something that happens before a story is published, maybe it's something that happens continuously. Maybe it's a premium feature instead of something that's tied only to brand. Corrections move off the back page and go front and center– that's part of the service because we expect things to be continuously improved.
columbia county

well…you've obviously never pitched a vc for money? pitch starts with how you/they are going to make money. goes on to explain (simple) idea and then explain how you can either defend yourself from competition or do it better/faster/cheaper. seems to me that you have provided the exact reason not to invest in a new media venture at this time.

sorry.
http://twitter.com/patrickboegel Patrick Boegel

I don't think allowing readers “wikified” access to articles is practical or realisitic. Everyone can go ahead and comment on content, but edit it? That sounds like a recipe for a media content site I'd like to avoid.

One potential revenue stream that need not be overlooked, the dreaded pay for content model.

In-line content is advertising, not content, no matter how the words are played or rearranged.
http://kadetcomm.wordpress.com/ Ken Kadet

To me, there is only one thing that matters: Content that engages people enough that they're willing to pay to get it.

In my new media company, all else flows from this. If people want the content, people will pay something for it. Advertising should be secondary, to some extent — in my new media company, we'll prove the model by whether readers/participants are willing to pay for what we do.

Comments and feedback are a must — and a robust community of people who comment enhances the content. But will people pay to participate at the outset? Probably not. Save it for later.

Your list is a great one, but it's tactics before strategy. The Atlantic has a fine website, but readers don't create — they get an opportunity to read and interact with the fantastic writers…and if you love it, doesn't take much to convince you to pay for the magazine.

Newspapers — a whole different animal…
kitchenhacker

“Advertising cannot be the primary method of revenue. “

I think you're on to something here, but what are the realistic alternatives? I don't think that consumers are going to pay for content, unless it is something they really can't acquire elsewhere which, given the Internet, is unlikely. Delivery services (paper, various technologies to push information onto mobile devices, audio versions of content, etc) might be able to be sold for a premium, but that won't be a primary revenue source.

I can see advertising changing. For instance, people would probably pay to guest post on your blog – even if you maintained some sort of editorial control. You benefit due to content and money. They benefit due to exposure. This is, arguably, advertising… even though it is potentially useful, quality content.
sgoldfaden

yoo chris- great post. Unfortunately I'm going to have to disagree with @jonknight below me. I think that advertising is going to need to be drastically changed (at least until the economy starts to turn and advertisers are comfortable spending more money). I'm really interested to see if companies like ABC or NBC start offering in-house social media experts as added value to network ad-purchases. Maybe the smaller 'local' organizations who are prudent about buying ad-space would be better enticed if they were given a social-media campaign to build brand awareness. As far as the current model needing some changes, I definitely agree. I read an interesting article from AdAge about how comparison advertising or “attack” advertising is becoming more common these days. ( http://bit.ly/eqSnz ) Cheers to a new “Super-Agency”

-Sean
http://www.twitter.com/majiwater Majiwater

Social media integration and stream updates/streamcasting are equally important.
Pingback: New “Marching Orders” For News Media in Seattle and The Nation « Eastside Real Estate Buzz
Pingback: Kevan Gilbert
http://www.theweddingvine.com/ Mark

@jonknight I think this is a very good point – endless adverts that are irrelevant to the content I am searching for, or looking at, is annoying. But turn this into a recommendation of a product based on the content I am looking at, and this is something else. I'm much more likely to click through and look at the product in more detail than I am with a bunch of random adverts.

@chrisbrogan – you've got some great posts here, keep up the good work!
Pingback: Digital Media Buzz - The Next Media Company | Digital Media Buzz
http://teenmoneymakingideas.com/free-stuff-and-deals/ My Deal

I think you are looking through rose colored glasses. I would imagine that this is all likely, but not in the near future. There are some kinks to work out at best. If advertising is not the main source of revenue … what will be? I can't wrap my mind around any realistic ideas. I seen your suggestion about selling services (the hotel tickets) but what is the actuality of people changing how they conduct personal affairs – I don't think I would change how I handle my personal affairs. So who knows, maybe you are a Polyanna or maybe I am just an old Skeptic?
http://www.marketleveragetv.com/ MLDina

I read an article about a barcamp panel in Orlando not long ago about how traditional media could revive subscriber rates, and step up to the next level. A lot of the suggestions looked at print media as a completely separate entity. I think print media could leverage social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, though specifically how I'm not sure.
http://bma-mgmt.com/ Rick Banas

I agree that partnerships and collaboration will play a vital role. The challenge will be for the New Media to generate revenue. Whether it is advertising or charging for in-line content, those of us in marketing who do not have the budgets to saturate the market will continue to look for ways to target our messages to select audiences and to reach those in select geographical areas. We will be looking to the New Media to help us justify how we can wisely spend limited dollars. We also will be looking at the New Media to help us justify why we should spend money on New Media versus the more grassroots approach of using no cost Social Media to reach our target audiences.

The New Media also may have a challenge of being able to distingish fact from commentary, opinion and fiction. Does the photo reflect reality or is a PhotoShop creation? Who will be responsible for verifying accuracy of information and will the desire for immediacy far outweigh any commitment to accuracy?
Pingback: AndreaVascellari.com Radar for May 27th 2009 | Andrea Vascellari
http://twitter.com/click_optimize click_optimize

I really enjoyed this entry Chris. Based on the comments below it was really thought-provoking for many people.

I think many of the traits you outline above are correctly executed by the team over at http://www.boingboing.net. I think a lot of companies could learn from their community-centric approach, killer content and excellent array of curators.
http://www.simonstapleton.com/ Simon Stapleton

Hi Chris, this is the first coherent view of the future of media I have seen *and personally bought into*. I can visualize what media will become!

The one thing you didn't mention is *when*. And I think this is important. Despite the rise of the 'silver surfer' I think there is still a generation gap in consumer behavior which this manifesto potentially discriminates against, to put it bluntly: there is still a mass of our ageing populations which won't be ready or willing (even though able) to take part.

Will this new world order in media be addressing the needs of the whole of market?
http://byronmiller.typepad.com/ Ron Miller

Hey Chris:
Great to see you exploring this. Here's my take in this week's FierceContentManagement Editor's Corner:

Searching for new models to make content pay online:
http://www.fiercecontentmanagement.com/story/se…
http://chrisbrogan.com Chris Brogan

Wow, Simon. I'm so damned happy to read this. I haven't been able to comment much yet, but I started at the most recent, so thanks.

I doubt any project addresses a whole market, but I'd say that we're getting closer.
http://chrisbrogan.com Chris Brogan

I think what comes next is a two-step news process. There will be fast news and accurate news, and we'll accept that one comes before the other. I think this works much better in the online world, and not nearly as good in paper.
http://chrisbrogan.com Chris Brogan

See, you NEED a perspective like mine (I say not so humbly) because you need to know what the STRETCH goal is. Does that make sense? This is like concept cars in the American automobile system. It's not a dream, but it points people towards ideas you can move with.

Make sense?
John Arrowsmith

I think you have a lot of terrific ideas here.

I disagree with allowing the general public to add to an article Wiki style without previous review by the staff using established best practice guidelines. Commenting on an article would be fine.

Do it yourself publishing is fine as long as your readers find your information to be consistently credible. It would only take one major editorial mistake to lose your audience.

I do not understand why you think inline content marketing is not advertising.

My assumption is that you do not envision This new company to be merely another aggregation venue for content produced by other outlets. As well as collaborating with other content producers, would you be planning on producing original content? Would your reporters be trusted freelancers?
http://www.wikicity.com/ Pat Lazure

Many of your themes are put into practice at WikiCity.com, which provides a city wiki for every city. Collaborative headlines, restaurant reviews, etc. Check'r out, Chris!

Pat
http://www.wikicity.com/ Pat Lazure

Patrick,

They said the same about the encyclopedia, but look at Wikipedia. The same is now happening everyday at WikiCity, which provides a city wiki for over 22,000 towns across the U.S.

Granted, the model has its flaws, but it might just work twice.
Pingback: Mass media being replaced by social streams of information « Sales Enablement in a Sales 2.o world
L Groves

It should also be run as non-profit.
http://chattarati.com John Hawbaker

“Everything must have collaborative opportunities. If I write about a restaurant, you should have wikified access to add to the article directly.”

Collaboration is great, and readers often have valuable insights or perspectives to add to a discussion. However, one reason readers trust a publication is because of its curators and editors. You mentioned this yourself, and I think blending curation with that level of collaboration presents some challenges. Perhaps what you suggest (wikified access) is simply an evolution of “commenting” that will sort itself out over time, but I'm not convinced of that just yet.
Kate

I agree with you completely. The way we take in media has changed, and MANY media companies are attempting to catch up with this. Magazines should really think about capitalizing on blog articles, and newspapers should focus on real time feeds (which they are already doing, but could get better). My only concern is what will happen to the novel and the short story? yes they are published electronically, but what else will happen?
Pingback: As novas empresas mediáticas : Ponto Media
http://greenermags.com/frmag Grant Lyons

boingboing is definitely one of the better models.
-grant lyons, http://GreenerMags.com
Pingback: links for 2009-06-02 « Synergias
Pingback: Media organizations of the future | Save the Media
Pingback: The Burger King approach to content – have it your way… « Bristol Editor’s Blog

The Next Media Company

The Next Media Company Manifesto

What Else?

ChrisBrogan.com runs on the Genesis Framework

Supporters

About

Subscribe