Get to Know More New Media Words and Concepts
Interactive Media Speaks a Different Language
Jul 11, 2009
In a media world that celebrates the interactions that are possible between the information providers and their audience, new definitions for everyday words are needed. In this new world a 'voluntary paysystem' (one that allows users to decide if, and how much they are willing to pay) is definitely seen as the preferred option to 'walled gardens' (websites with Pay Walls; sites that are not freely available to all). Here are some other new realities and possibilities of New Media:
- 'Crowd sourcing' and 'social media' have a role to play in delivering the news
- 'Niche content' could be important
- 'Membership programs' could become a business model for online journalism, and
- 'E-readers' are surely going to be a part of a 'mobile strategy'
To understand media in the internet age, it helps to learn the language. Entirely new words (think blogosphere) speedily enter the vernacular. New meanings are ascribed to some very common words, and new phrases are coined almost every day. To help, definitions will be added for new media terms that are enclosed in single quotation marks in this article.
Disruptive Innovation is Causing Anxiety for Legacy Companies
It is no surprise that many publishers In the Legacy Media (the old, non-interactive media of the mainstream press) have been caught off guard by all the 'disruptive innovation' - the strange and unexpected competition which these terms represent.
'Crowd sourcing' (when readers are asked -- or simply volunteer -- to add information to a developing story) and 'social media' (think Twitter; or Facebook; think news spreading virally through those networks) can be seen as complementing the reporting/editing process. Or they can be seen as endangering the reporter's job.
Some publishers feel particularly threatened by 'news aggregators' (which link to stories in the legacy papers) and in return have made some threats of their own.
Finding Other Ways to Monetize Content
New Media voices in the blogosphere, learning that many legacy publications are considering putting up pay walls have reacted with alarm. This is the "worst possible strategy a newspaper management team could come up with," said Steve Outing a journalist and consultant who has a blog of his own, and a monthly column at Editor and Publisher magazine.
Mark Potts at Recovering Journalist, criticized the entire newpaper industry, noting that its leaders, "after years of incredible strategic errors...have now set a course to sail straight off the edge of the cliff." Once a print reporter, Potts has been a digital media consultant for nearly two decades.
Like Outing and Potts, many bloggers and journalists see other ways newspapers can 'monetize' (get paid; find new revenue streams for) their content. Outing says that to survive, newspaper companies must do exactly the opposite of charging for content. "Get their content everywhere on every device, on every competitor's and aggtergator's websites, on every blog and Twitter and Facebook post possible," he said. He has written enthsusiastically about various voluntary pay systems which are under development.
Outing was one of the first to write about Kachingle when plans for it were introduced earlier this year, and has now included its competitors, like Inamoon, Contenture and Payyattention, in his columns. These systems allow website users to easily support a multiplicity of news organizations and blogs at a level of their choice, including no support. Some are expected to launch before the end of summer 2009.
Memberships Plans and Mobile Platforms May Offer Solutions Too
Outing has also written about a 'membership program' that the New York Times is reported to be considering. If such a plan keeps the website free, but offers significant benefits to readers who opt to join, then Outing believes it could bring in significant revenue and without damaging website traffic.
Other places that new media critics say the legacy companies should be looking for additional revenues include charging for very specific 'niche content' (like the Wall Street Journal's success at charging for its business pages), and experimenting more with paid editions for E-readers (like the Kindle).
Cell phones, too, as well as e-readers should be part of a news company's 'mobile strategy', according to Mark Potts. "The numbers on mobile growth are explosive. Just about everybody's got a celll phone....," he writes. And there are many more ways developing, he says "to deliver information to people on the go."
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