Consumer Generated Media and it

Most of us wake up in the morning and the first thing we do is check our email. Want to catch a movie, just look up the times on the Internet. Need to do the grocery shopping, buy a new pair of pants, or pay your bills? Just hop on to the World Wide Web. It’s hard to imagine our life without the World Wide Web these days, but it wasn’t that long ago that most people lived their day to day lives without the use and convenience of the Internet. The creation of the World Wide Web is still relatively young and is improving almost daily, and there is no doubt that computers have come along way from the primitive structures they once were.

By the 1970’s personal computers had been introduced and new audiences were emerging onto the Internet. In 1979 the USENET system was created and fostered the very spirit of the Internet: information sharing and discussion. New audiences were able to use email and participate in discussions.

In the beginning the only network in place was made up of terminals that all had to be logged into mainframes. In the 1960’s the beginning of the Internet began to form with the onset of packet-switching networks, allowing for small packets of data to be broken up and transmitted to its destination and reassembled on the other side.

Although packet-switching networks had already been set up in Europe, America finally began working on a similar system in 1968 for the US Defense Department. The project was for the Advanced Research Projects Agency. The idea was to create a nationwide computer network that would be able to function even if it were to be destroyed by war or natural disaster. ARPANET, as it was referred to, used the transmission protocol Network Control Protocol (NCP), which enabled different networks to talk to each other, resulting in the host-to-host network.

This program was used primarily by educators, researchers, scientists, and the government. One of the first major Internet applications was known as electronic mail (email) and was the most widely used network application in existence.

ARPANET experienced slow growth in its beginning. As it expanded into what we now call the Internet, it used an open architecture network which meant other networks could connect to and interact with the Internet and other networks to which it was connected. These early networks were used in a closed community of researchers, and scholars. One of the main uses of this technology was used by the United States Department of Defense.

The Network Control Protocol proved to have limits in its existing open-architecture. In answer to the existing problems a new communications protocol was created and referred to as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). It was designed in order to eliminate any centralized global control.

As the military began to use the Internet as a means of military communication more and more, a new complementary protocol call Internet Protocol (IP) was combined with TCP to overcome complications that had been highlighted in the TCP Protocol. The new TCP/IP emerged as the standard for all military Internet Systems, and the Internet itself.

During the 1980’s most Internet products began combining into the TCP/IP protocol. This opened the way to commercial applications. For the next few years the number of computers that were connecting to the Internet jumped from a few hundred to an astounding 1.3 million by 1993. Soon commercial e-mail carriers began exploring the possibility of Internet-based e-mail, although these services were still primarily used by researchers and businesses.

Commercial use of the World Wide Web has exploded and has been facilitated by the use of Internet advertising. Prodigy was one of the first companies to begin experimenting with online advertising, and began doing so long before the commercialization of the Web. It first went live with their services in 1990 and adopted online advertising as a revenue source. Other companies, such as CompuServe and America Online (AOL), adopted online advertising a few years later. Online advertising was not addressed seriously until 1995.

The law firm of Canter and Siegal really pushed online adverting when they began posting unsolicited advertisements to over 7,000 newsgroups. Although the advertisements did reveal the potential of online advertising when Canter and Siegal received several responses from their postings, it also revealed the darker side of advertising, spamming. It began to set the standards for Internet Etiquette and online advertising.

Hotwired was launched by Wired Magazine, and was a Web property with an advertising business model. Its first contract was with AT&T in 1994. Other inaugural sponsors included IBM and the Pepsi alcoholic beverage Zima. At the time only two advertising agencies were buying online advertisement slots, Modem Media and Messner Vetere Berge McNamee Schmatterer. These clients accounted for over half of HotWired’s charter advertisements. With the success of HotWired, other sites were soon scrambling to accept advertising, and today there are thousands of sites that depend on advertising as a source of revenue

The world is changing at a rapid pace and the world of advertising right along with it. We, as consumers, are increasingly relying on non-traditional forms of media for entertainment, social interactions, shopping, and other daily activities. As of November 2006, the number of US internet users reached 210,080,067, 69.6% of the population, according to Nielsen/Net Ratings

So while consumers are continuing to “get online”, advertisers are making the move with them. No doubt adverting is moving in the digital direction, and that digital is emerging “as the hub of marketing”.

As rich media began to replace the traditional banner ads of old it opened the way for more interactive communications. Three major advertising trends are emerging as the top ways to reach consumers.

As the online market is rapidly growing and evolving, so to is the rush for advertisers to use online marketing. One of the fastest growing markets is search engine advertising (SEM), which has become increasingly important to advertisers. It has been reported that in 2006 advertisers spent $9.4 billion on search engine marketing. This is a 62% increase over the 2005 SEM spending. The new trend for SEM is direct sales, which is now considered as persuasive an object as brand awareness.

The idea is to drive larger amounts of online traffic to particular websites that have paid to have their website listed or ad be displayed as one of the top listings under a particular word search. There are several types of tactics that advertisers use for SEM.

The most frequently used tactic by advertisers is to improve a Website’s organic search results. Over 75% of advertisers use this approach. It accounted for about 12% of SEM spending in 2006.

The second most frequently used tactic is the paid placement. This is when advertisers are guaranteed a high ranking, usually in relation to desired words. The ads are usually segregated away from editorial links, but can vary as to where they are located on a search engine. This tactic is used by over 71% of advertisers and accounted for over $8 billion.

Other types used are paid inclusion, paid submission, banner ads and content promotion.

This chart demonstrates the importance of search engines to consumer and why advertisers are using Search Engines as a means to reach their consumers.

With more and more companies using search engine advertising, search engines are becoming increasing more cluttered with advertisements. A problem that advertisers face is Click Fraud or clicks that are not by potential consumers, but are clicks from a third party to either boost their ad payments by clicking on ads hosted on their websites or those that click on competitors’ ads in order to drive down competing advertising budgets.

Constant competition for desired keywords has driven up prices. Ad agencies are approaching their pricing limits. Over two thirds of advertisers claim that they have noticed an increase in keyword pricing, and 25% say they are at maximum efficiency. Experts claim that despite increasing ad expenditures ad year-to-year growth in the value of paid placement, SEM is nearing a pricing plateau.

Although most Search Engine Marketing is kept within the normal guidelines of ethical behavior, there are a few concerns that consumers should keep in mind. Any search engine that allows the ranking of a website to be influenced with payment and provides little or no indication to the searcher is using unethical practices, as they are deceiving the search as to the relevance or popularity of website. Searchers should also be aware of keyword spamming, which involves using hidden text to improve rankings that are disapproved by search engines or involve deception.

One thing many advertising executives agree on is the impact and current trend of online video streaming. They believe that broadband maturity and a healthy online ad market have converged to create an ideal environment for video ads to thrive. As one executive from GM Planworks states, advertisers “are beginning to experiment with different uses of video storytelling and information”. One example of this is General Motors which has built their own video showroom in order to make their product more compelling. More than 40% of Americans consume online video at least once a week. This makes online video advertising very appealing for most advertisers. Geoff Ramsey the CEO of eMarketer says “If there is one sweeping trend that provides a monumental opportunity for digital marketers this year, it’s the harnessing of online video as an advertising and marketing platform”.

The above image shows a great example of how advertisers are using streaming video as vehicle for reaching consumers.

Challenges
Although many advertisers agree that this is a great way to advertise, online video is still considered in its awkward phase. Some advertisers believe that online video is still finding its way in terms of commercial monetization. Concerns also arise about what consumers will tolerate in the online video space. Geoff Ramsey states, “Marketers need to be bold in their experimentation with different online video advertising formats.” Another issue concerning online video is that there are different formats, workflow differences, and widely varying reporting expectations. Consumers are getting lower quality video and a smaller viewing area. Despite these concerns online video is growing rapidly as advertisers scramble to keep up.

One of the fastest growing in big trends right now is Consumer Generated Media. It is media that consumers shape and share themselves. Over 44% of online users create and post one form of consumer-generated content online every year. Increasingly consumers are controlling, uploading, downloading, filming, recording, circulating, and passing along their own personal encounters with services, companies, products, and brands. Advertisers are increasingly embracing these consumer efforts and are actually empowering consumers to record and broadcast feedback moments. Consumers aggressively monitor advertisers and brands. Several types of Consumer Generated Media are easily able to intercept other consumers during the purchase cycle, which can impact business results. Consumer Generated Media can also be called Consumer Generated Content and Consumer Generated Advertising, along with many other names.

Many advertisers agree that “the old media production and distribution hierarchies are crumbling. Brands can and must start earning the attention of customers throughout the creation of compelling and valuable digital content”. So while most agree that the future of advertising lies in digital media, many challenges still face the fast changing world of media advertising. One such challenge is how to collaborate and coordinate online and offline advertising. In order for online advertising to be effective is will have to be supported by offline media. Online and Offline media will become more intertwined. As we move into the future of advertising we will see a move away from just bombarding consumers with messages over and over. The overarching theme will not be about big content, but what fits into small places that are relevant.

As one of the fastest growing forms of online media, it is important to know exactly what Consumer Generated Media is. In essence it is online material that is created, initiated, circulated, and shared by consumers who are intent on educating others about products, brands and services. Most of the material is archived online for easy access by other consumers and market influencers. A large amount of Consumer Generated Material is often inspired by relevant product or service experiences. Over 1.4 billion comments are posted by consumers each year and that number is growing by 30% annually.

Blogs: A blog is a journal style user-generated website that is a frequent, chronological publication of personal thoughts and Weblinks. Topics range in variety and each site can contain anything from text, images, and links to other sites. Most blogs are not dedicated to any one particular brand or brand experience, but provide unconscious or incidental brand commentary that can shed light on how consumers perceive certain brands. Blog usages have been doubling in number over the past several years.

Message boards and forums: A virtual bulletin board on the WWW where people post and view messages. Most tend to be industry or interest-focused and draw consumers based on a particular product, specialty, or niche. Active participants are usually those who have experienced the product or issue in question. Many users participate in order to obtain information from other users about certain products or services. Below is an example of a typical message board.

Moblogs, Photo sharing, and tagging: User Generated Content that is posted online from mobile devices such as a cellular phone or PDA. It allows the viewer to look through the eyes of the generator to visually experience where he or she is, and what he or she is doing. Often the photos are tagged with labels for easier organization and indexing through search engines.

Podcasting: Consumer can create their own radio broadcasts and post on the internet for others to enjoy. Users can download and play on portable media players and personal computers. This is a good way for companies to listen in to what their customers are saying about their products. As the use of podcasting is expected to continue to grow, and more consumers are using podcast as a way to stay informed, it is no wonder advertisers see podcasting as an appealing media format in which to use Consumer Generated Advertising.

Vlogs/personal videos: Vlogs are Consumer Generated Content that is basically a video based journal. The video can be distributed over the Internet. Such sites, such as YouTube, have really progressed this type of User Generated Content. Consumers are driven by visualization. It heightens drama, emotional resonance, and the ability to prove one’s case through documentation. Video is considered the most significant form of Consumer Generated Media as it reflects the unaided, organic consumer creation. Sites such as YouTube and MySpace have lead the revolution in vlogs. The following is an exmaple of a video log.

Media convergence can be described as the collision of various media formats. One thing is for sure, media convergence is an ongoing process that involves not only media technologies, but industries, content, and audiences. Media is everywhere, and as it changes and evolves we develop new skills in which to manage information, new ways in which to transmit information across channels, as well as new creative outlets that exploit and recreate the potential of emerging information structures.

In the past we had a telephone, a personal computer, a radio, a television, as well as a television. All of which were stationary platforms, in which a person had to be at home in order to use them. Most often each vehicle used only output one form of media. Now these media vehicles are becoming increasinly smaller, more mobile and are crossing media platforms. You can listen to the radio on your computer, as well as play video games, use your video game console to play CDs and use your cell phone, not only as your telephone, but your web browser and your MP3 player.

When discussing Media Convergence it is important to note that this term emcompasses many different meanings. There is technological convergence were media is digitalized and can be displayed on various types of media platforms. They are interchangable, where tv can be played on your phone and you can make phone calls from your computer.

Media Convergence can also mean the HORIZONTAL INTEGRATION OF INDUSTRIES. For example, a company such as AOL Time Warner doesn't just deal with business on the Web or cable telelvision, but now has interests in film, books, games, real estate, music, and many other enterprises.

SOCIAL CONVERGENCE is when the consumer can be seen multitaking in an information environment. For instance, when someone is watching their television while listening to a CD that is being played on their laptop, all while writing a school paper and chatting with friends on Instant Messenager. It is media convergence in the Consumers' minds.

We are also in a CULTURAL CONVERGENCE where new forms of creativity in the form of consumer content are being explored. This form of media convergence is giving the consumers the abiltiy to participate in media by creating, commenting, and recirculating media content. Smart companies will tap into this form of convergence and will encourage it as a way to communicate different kinds of narrative information.

With that said, this website attempts to explore media convergence in technology, and how it is affects advertising today, as well as in the future.

SmartPhones are full-featured mobile phones with personal computer like functionality incorporated into specialized pocket-sized device. They encompass a variety of features all of which generally include the ability to make phone calls, organize calendar and address book, take pictures, check your email, instant message, access the Internet, play audio and video files and even use certain applications such as word processing and video games. In a sense it is your phone, camera, computer, address book, GPS sytem, and your video game console all in one tiny and powerful machine. Most phones use 2.5G technology, but new 3G technology will soon take over creating more advanced applications.

The way we view television has changed, where once TV was distributed by cable or satellite, Internet TV gives us the ability to view video streams over the Internet. With faster connection speeds and advances in technology it has become more common place to find traditional television content accessible legally and for free over the Internet. It uses an open framework where both small and medium video producers contribute higly innovative niche content alongside offerings from more traditional retail and distribution channels. With Internet TV anyone can create content and publish it on a global basis.

Examples of this would be video on YouTube and television programming on ABC.com that you can stream. The viewing model consists of webpages with embedded video streams that are representive of broadcast television. Some may call this Video on Demand where the viewer can download or stream a program anytime they wish.

There are also subscription based programs that offer greater services such as high-definition TV, digital video recording, and Video on Demand that you can download and keep.

IPTV is often confused with or interchanged with Internet TV, but its infrastructure and set-up is quite different. It uses a closed network that distrubtes more traditional video based content provided by media conglomerates allowing these organizations to have more control of content that is distributed, as opposed to the more open network of Internet TV. ccccccc cccccc cccdd

Essentially a set-top box is used that connects to a DSL line which assembles Internet Protocol Packets into a video stream and decodes the content. It stores both Live TV and stored video (VOD). Because set-top box use Ethernet and IP it can be used to bundle services where telephone, data, and video all use one single connection instead of a separate one as in the past. This is called The Triple Play.

IPTV is allowing consumers to access content over their TV, PC, phone, anytime, anywhere and to integrate services and aims to tie them all together.

The IP network allows delivery of not only a signigicant amount of content offered by digital cable and satellite providers, but also offers greater interactivity.

Mobile TV is essential tv services on mobile phones that has been specificallyadapted to mobile mediums, which usually includes mobile cell phones. It delivers Video On Demand, as well as traditional and live TV programs. It also enables podcasting, a service (usually subscribtion based) where content is delivered to a user’s mobile device and can be viewed whenever the user chooses even when the mobile device is not connected to a network .

Digital Audio Player

In the past families gathered around their radios in their living rooms in order to hear music or radio programs together. We’ve come along way from that time as now many of us have given our conventional sense of radio and turned to the more personalized and portable Digital Audio Player (DAP).

hhhhhhhhhh

Examples of Digital Audio Players

What Is It?

A Digital Audio Player stores, organizes and plays digital audio files. They are sometimes called MP3 Players. DAPs are small handheld devices that most often use flash memory card in order to store not only audio files, but also other media formats such as video. Their large capacities for storage allows for whole personal audio collections to be stored.

DAPs work by downloading, from an internet source, various media files. Most sites are paid download, but others offer free files, which are controversial due to copyright laws. DAPs also allow the user to download Podcasts, radio programs or tv-like video feeds that can be stored to play at the owners convenience. Even low-capacity DAPs can store several hours of digital media files.

Consumers are willing to participate in the communication process. They want to interact, volunteer, participate, and create around the brands and campaigns that they both love and hate. Why? Because brands are a part of our lives. Advertising bridges a connection between the consumer and the brand. Before, this process was an exclusive club, where marketers controlled when, where, how, exposure time and place, the medium and the message. Whereas once the tools required to fashion and disseminate images and stories of industrial products to the masses were only available to the industry (advertising agencies), they are now available to ordinary citizens. With the technological tools available and the knowledge of advertising widely dispersed consumers want to be co-creators because they can. They are computer savvy, crafting their own webpages, blogs, streaming video, and have the ability to make new professional commercials. Consumers are actively watching and voting on hundreds of product-centered material. It gives the consumer a direct relationship with the Almighty.

Another reason for their interest is for self promotion. Consumers like the opportunity to be creative because they feel they have some impact and ownership. It gives ordinary consumers who aspire to be film, TV or advertising professionals to flex their creative muscles. It is a way for them to get the buzz out for themselves. Allowing them to, in a sense, advertising themselves to perspective employees.

Conclusion

So what does all this convergence mean for the future? Will there ever be one mega machine that fulfills all our entertainment needs and replaces all the others?

No, I don’t think there will ever be one machine that does everything, but I do believe that technologies will continue to advance and converge allowing for an increased amount of media formats to be played over a variety of media vehicles.

What this means for the consumer is that they will be in control, control of their media consumption, how they consume it, and when they consume it.

This becomes an ever increasing challenge to advertisers and marketers to reach these consumers as they control more and more of their media needs. Advertisers will need to use mobile advertising more aggressively as media vehicles become progressively more mobile. Also, as technology advances to cater to more individual needs of the consumer, advertisers will also be driven to target consumers on a more personalized level addressing their specific needs and interests.

“Mobile Web Advertising Review”. Mobile Advertising Association. Retrieved April 30, 2007 from http://www.mmaglobal.com/mobileadvertising.pdf