Web 2.0 Accelerates Changing Media Landscape

New technology is creating tumultuous change. It seems almost every week some emerging Web-based company is vying with big, established media companies for consumer (and advertiser) attention. Business Week Online recently underscored this change in an article titled, ”The Net’s New Age.” Traditional newspapers are beginning to feel the effects of consumer-generated media from over 30 million blogs and other sources. This is evidenced by some newspapers either folding, or contemplating a Web-only format. Other newspapers such as the Washington Post are fighting back with large staff cuts.

Television is facing similar challenges with consumers now being able to time shift and placeshift television programming with technologies such as TiVo and Slingbox. Traditional television content will have to compete with the increased amount of time spent online (now equal to TV), as well as Web-based video content from upstarts such as Rocketboom, YouTube, Current TV and many others. In fact, many predict an explosion of Web-enabled niche programming made economically possible through what some now call silvercasting. The opinions about how quickly this will change regular television viewership range from conservative to quite aggressive.

This transformation is causing advertisers to shift substantial portions of their budgets online. Consequently, reduced ad revenues exacerbate the problem for higher overhead traditional media and puts Web start-ups and bloggers at an advantage because of their lower or zero overhead structure.

There is nothing to indicate this change will decelerate. Everything points to rapid change and that makes predicting the future media landscape almost an impossibility. At any rate, it will be watched with keen interest by many.