SpectatorBytes

For content producers and providers, the Web is bound to create significant value in the middle. Much has been said about the Web’s long-tail over the past few years, and certainly many companies are focused on the “head” since most offline models have been built around the “head”. However, the middle – which some call [...]

Much is being written today about the imminent downturn in the economy and how it has started to impact overall business activity (see here). This has gotten me thinking about what are the potential implications for the digital media community over the next 18-24 months. Realities: – Consumers’ online usage will continue to increase at [...]

A couple of days ago, Fred Wilson posted an interesting note on the future of the music business (see here). Fred’s main point was that streaming will likely emerged as the new model for music online. Fred posits that given the increased availability of connectivity and portable connected devices, streaming will eventually prove to be [...]

Today’s major news headline is NewsCorp’s FIM sales reorganization (see here). While internal politics have been blamed for the changes in the blogosphere, in an strategic sense, I would expect the move to further help FIM built its brand advertising revenues. Here are some of the reasons why: – Increases focus on creating “scalable” custom [...]

There has been some recent posts discussing the impact of the Web on other media. Today’s Techcrunch post on publishing and blogging is the latest example of that (see here). In my view, these editorials are signals that the Web is finally coming on its own as a medium. This got me thinking about what [...]

Much discussion has taken place about the value of advertising networks over the last couple of days. Here are some of the most interesting posts (See Are Ad Networks Becoming Irrelevant?, What’s This Fascination with Ad Networks? and Are ad networks for loser/weak publishers?). I believe that Web publishers need to focus on building their [...]

Some interesting news came out GM today (see GM roars Forward Into Digital Ad Channels). This suggests brand advertisers are finally ready to commit significant spending to digital media. This is certainly good news for the industry, and in particular for companies that are creating solutions specifically designed to serve brand advertisers. GM’s decision is [...]

I recently came across an article in Ad Age that urged us to think differently and consider a scenario in which the Web is not a medium suited for advertising (Think Different: Maybe the Web’s Not a Place to Stick Your Ads). While the argument is well constructed, I believe the author may reach a [...]

The Google-Doubleclick deal announcement (see Google closes $3.1 billion DoubleClick deal) is a good time to share my current thoughts on the evolution of advertising: I have been talking to a few folks about display advertising over the past couple of weeks. Here are some of my findings to date: – Majority of online revenues [...]

During the Bear Stearns Conference, Google’s Tim Amstrong described YouTube as the “brightest light” in terms of display-ad potential (see Google: Moving Aggressively Into Display Ads). I remember many people who were surprised at the value that Google paid for YouTube a couple of years back. However, it was clear then and they confirmed today [...]

Over the past few years, I have been waiting for the coming of brand advertising dollars to hit the Web. When that happens, the Web is expected to dramatically change. Web publishing and video production will further flourish as brand dollars will help get talent from other media to commit to the Web. However, current [...]

Techcrunch is reporting a rumor that Bebo may be acquired soon. Rumor: Is Google About to Buy Bebo For $1 Billion To $1.5 Billion? Or Will it Be MySpace? One of the things that has amazed me lately is the amount of activity that is taking place inside social networks – billions of page views, [...]