What if Publishers Went All Digital
View Comments Published by cory May 10th, 2010 in Creative Frequency, Innovation, NextWeb.Now that we’re getting all hyped up on the age of digital, we should start to wonder whether news media are more brands that are the mark of quality than exclusively the creator of content. While starting to use my new cool iPad, I am beginning the migration process from print to digital. This new device is the beginning of the end of the constraints of the publishing deadline and all things that go with it, including the vertical integration that was required by the legacy industry.
Makes me think of the value of media brands and not the value of the print medium they are delivered on. In the consumer goods arena, companies can license a name with almost no knowledge of the fact to an end consumer. Can publishers begin the process of licensing brands to lend credibility to new arenas? The NY Times front page, available in your home town? Probably a better produced front page than what is made today. Not possible? With digital editing and delivery, it sure is. In fact, news sources could aggregate and charge for the brands and content additions that you want, like cable. My Netvibes feed does this to a degree, but the delivery is still Yahoo homepage 2004.
Why pay, when it is all free? Because no industry survives on free and most stubbornly find a way to get back to normal profits over time. If the telecom industry can do it, anyone can.
