URL’s are a usability detail only geeks can care about. Geeks like me. Insist on a CMS that creates readable URL’s. [thanks to Adrian Holovaty for the pointer]
ePeriodicals: the eBooks of tomorrow?
It appears that the press is confusing Microsoft’s Tablet PC strategy with its “ePeriodicals” strategy.The confusion is understandable. It appears that Microsoft is conflating production, display, hardware, and (probably) DRM.
Microsoft plans to release an “end-to-end electronic publishing solution, known as ePeriodicals, which it will introduce at its Tablet PC launch”, according to eWeek. One can only hope that “ePeriodicals” is a code name.
Publishers have always been enthusiastic about technologies that allow them to make computer screens look like print, prevent copying, and give them some hope of charging for content. But do they really want Microsoft as a partner? Besides, if eBooks have failed with a much simpler business model, I have to wonder whether consumers will buy the end products of this end-to-end “solution”.
Yahoo should offer RSS aggregation
The more I use RSS feeds, the more I like them. And I’m beginning to realize that this technology may have more depth than meets the eye.
Existing RSS aggregation sites such as Syndic8 and News is Free work pretty well, but are far from perfect. It’s hard to find feeds that interest you, their database of feeds is far from up to date, it’s confusing to set them up, and they’re not very flexible.
This could be a good-sized business and Yahoo has an opportunity to stake out a leadership position by offering:
- A comparatively complete and up-to-date directory of the best feeds integrated with Yahoo’s existing directory.
- Better tools for finding interesting feeds.
- Better tools for bloggers.
- The ability to integrate feeds with news from AP, Reuters, and Yahoo’s other sources.
- The ability to recommend feeds to like-minded readers.
RSS aggregation fits well with Yahoo’s current strategy because it can be automated and fits with their existing services technology. Furthermore, the RSS universe is very strong in tech news, and would help Yahoo bolster their existing news sources.
Ending spectrum scarcity
Lee Gomes at the WSJ has a great column on Open Spectrum–essentially the dynamic allocation of radio bandwidth among devices smart enough to share it efficiently.
I first heard of this idea in Lawrence Lessig’s The Future of Ideas. Part of Lessig’s thesis is that many industries make money by creating artificial scarcity. Call it the John D. Rockefeller strategy.
Spectrum scarcity may not be a problem much longer, but there are a lot of entrenched interests who want to keep it scarce.
Synergy between editorial and advertising at AOL/TW
AOL/TW’s Southern Progress makes lots of money by building ramps over the wall between editorial and advertising, according to the Journal.
For example, Southern Living has a sponsorship deal with Disney which includes an agreement to run “a happy story [about an aspect of Epcot] in line with their editorial policy”.
Apparently, Southern Living has one of the highest profit margins among AOL’s magazines.
Still worth reading, but not worth paying for
Michael Kinsley’s article It’s Not Just the Internet: Almost no one pays for content in any medium. is as true today as it was in May of 2001. This is a truth that Kinsley knows from bitter experience.
Broadcast, cable, radio, newspapers, and magazines all give content away in hopes of making money on advertising. It’s the rare media company that makes money on its (non-entertainment) content.
As we traverse the long tail of the online advertising recession and wonder aloud if we could make money selling our content, it’s important to remember this point.
Newspapers: get your share of this $300 million
Newspapers are missing out on $300 million in national online advertising, according to Clark G. Gilbert of the Harvard Business School. From E&P:
“Newspapers are exhibiting the classic symptoms of an industry faced with disruptive technology,” said Borrell Associates CEO Gordon Borrell in a statement. “They’ve invested in Web sites, sometimes heavily, but they have remained dangerously over-reliant on their traditional customers. The disruptive technology of the Internet opens up new classes of potential customers that newspapers must pursue.”
The recommended tactics — “tap into the power of the Web as a medium”, focus on banner ads and email notifications on classifieds, invest in databases, create online ad staffs, and sell localization to national advertisers — sound awfully familiar.
If I understand the notion of disruptive technology expressed in The Innovator’s Dilemma, more than this is needed. Online newspapers need a new charter of independence from the print edition, and a mission to put the print edition out of business, if they’re going to succeed.
It’s clear how the Net disrupts newspapers, but how can newspapers use the Net to disrupt other businesses?
Confusing distribution with content
Dave Winer is right. I heard this same story on NPR about the University of Georgia attempting to blanket their neighborhood of Athens with WiFi to see what would happen. This is a totally cool idea. Then they went and spoiled it by focusing on creating lots of location-specific information.
This is another case of confusing distribution with content and thinking of the Internet as something that exists in a particular place.
Shovels are actually pretty useful tools
The SF Chronicle reports that newspapers are moving beyond “shovelware”.
The truth is that newspapers have never liked shovelware and every online editor I’ve ever met was obsessed with creating fancy packages and special content to commemorate this or that. And virtually none of it sticks.
At this moment in the online publishing business, it probably makes more sense to focus on keeping overhead down and also on work that provides some kind of annuity in the form of a lasting business or creative benefit.
Instead of creating flash animations, custom audio, or slide shows, it might make more sense to sharpen your shovel. Convert your templates to use cascading style sheets. Or come up with some tools to encourage bloggers to link to stories on your site.
Emarketer's broadband forecast roundup
Emarketer has an excellent summary of different analyst firms’ forecasts of broadband penetration to 2005. It’s a great resource if you need an estimate.