One of the most obvious observations any Ad:Tech 2009 attendee was likely to make is that the conference attracted a very diverse crowd, in terms of age and professional expertise, among many other factors. That being said, the presentations clearly illustrated some general trends and ideas regarding the Digital Media sector that are pertinent to all attendees. First off, the conference provided a general reminder of the relative sectors’ state in our currently struggling economy. Healthcare and Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) have proven themselves to be best at weathering this mighty storm, although it is also comforting to know that the Auto sector may be poised for a rebound, given Ford’s resilience, especially in the context of the Detroit Three.
Within the digital media sector, Search and Mobile were repeatedly defined as the most proliferated platforms. Generally speaking, pure play companies have been doing well, and the online video platform is back on the rise. Most importantly, consumption of online material has had a linear, upward trend in dollar terms, indicating that an understanding of the factors driving the growth is particularly significant at this time.
Ultimately, the focus in terms of building a successful company in this space should be on finding ways to develop a strong understanding of both the consumer and the data. A most basic illustration of this concept can be made by distinguishing between Facebook and MySpace users: the former are more interested in knowing what people are up to, whereas the latter are more likely to look at what people are into (s.a. their music tastes, for example). This focus on the demands of the consumer and the meaning behind the data may provide an answer to why Twitter numbers have been going flat, for instance. Perhaps the site is not quite a youth phenomenon, but an adult one, which may have been posing limits on Twitter’s success, since the segment of consumers it does not appeal to happens to be a major overall consumer of digital media. Meanwhile an analysis of consumption data may prove that Facebook has made Twitter less appealing with its “status” feature, for example. If this were the case, then it is likely that Facebook is ahead of the game and has successfully understood its consumers and data, and has followed both as they change over time.
A question that was raised by knowledgeable speakers and curious audience members alike is how to separate paid from unpaid content on sites. Jonathan Miller, head of the Digital Media Group at News Corp, emphasized the importance of establishing a “crystal clear value proposition.” Miller referred to the Wall Street Journal as a company that has not only been successful revenue and reader-wise in distinguishing between paid and unpaid content on its site, but has gone as far as to raise the bar for others determined to profit from the same separation. In order to arrive at Miller’s proposition, we must define “quality content” in the context of a particular platform, which once again demands an understanding of the consumer, the data, as well as some brainstorming as to who will produce this content, once it has been defined.
There were many, many more ideas that were raised at this conference, but on a most basic level, I hope the ones above give some insight into the rapidly growing and changing digital media sector. Sir Martin Sorrell, Founder and CEO of WPP, casually remarked that “things are getting less worse, but they are not significantly better,” which should remind us all that the steady increases in online material consumption provide tremendous opportunity.
Wow. A $35 billion dollar bid for NBCU. I feel like a small African village at the UN when the big boys are talking about nuclear proliferation and I’m at the podium talking about mosquito nets, irrigation and farming. My advice for GE, which I’m sure they do not need, is to sell baby sell! Clearly, GE should play coy and act like they are not interested in selling at $35 billion. You know, play hard to get to build some tension and momentum. Just when Comcast is ready to walk away, yell out, “Ok, it’s a deal!”
Peachtree Media Advisors, Inc. is launching a green technology division today to provide the same high-level investment banking services to the renewable and clean tech energy sectors. Peachtree Green Advisors will focus on assisting entrepreneurs and middle-market companies with M&A, capital raise and strategic partnership transactions in the rapidly growing sustainable energy sector. This has been a long time coming and after several months of planning, it is fair to say that Peachtree Media Advisors, Inc. has just as much a command of the Green Tech sector as it does for digital media.
