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The Revolution is Happening Right Now

September 19th, 2006

I don’t have time for a long post (well, it is fairly long, but it is stream of consciousness… no editing), but I wanted to comment on something substantial that is happening right now on the Internet.

In my last post, I discussed Joe Trippi’s book, The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.

As the title implied, and as the book discussed, a revolution in media is taking place, and for once, the television set will have a very small roll to play.

Why? People don’t like TV. It’s a push medium. You get to see what media execs want you to see. You get to see what everyone else will like… what has mass-market appeal, as opposed to what you and a few (or many) people like you in the world want to see.

I know what you’re thinking. Everyone has a TV, and people watch many hours of TV every day. How can Scott suggest that people don’t like TV?

The answer is simple: People are hungry for entertainment, and the TV has been their best option.

The revolution that is taking place now… that is at a turning point now… is that the world is being given another option. A new medium that satisfies their individual need not only for entertainment, but for learning, and a whole lot more.

People are being given an option that allows them to decide what they want to watch, when they want to watch it. An option that allows them to participate rather than simply assume the role of spectator.

The Internet is taking control out of the hands of media execs who make decisions based on the needs of corporate America (the people who buy advertising), and it’s putting control in the hands of all of us. In the end, this benefits customers and corporations alike (those who “get it.”) Media execs have a reason to be nervous.

Case and point: Millions of people have watched videos of a young 20-something on the Internet with the nickname “Brookers.” Brookers films clever, goofy, and quite quirky skits of herself and posts them on YouTube.com for the world to see. Brookers is not backed by big corporate dollars… she is backed by her home computer, a $100 web cam, and imagination.

Here is one of her videos:

Now, I can see a 55 year-old corporate executive watching the video and saying to himself… jeesh, isn’t this dumb? That was my first reaction too. But if that is your only reaction… You don’t get it. At least not yet.

Yes, the skit is a bit goofy… but here is the news flash: So are many of us! Sometimes people want goofy, out of the mainstream entertainment. Not so goofy yourself? Don’t worry. MSN has launched a video service that satisfies another need… the need for news. Why wait for your nightly news, when you get get your news, online, whenever you want it? Your news won’t be provided by Internet hobbiests… it will be funnelled in from the TV networks (NBC has already started). Google and AOL have video sites up as well.

Brookers posted her videos, and the people responded. They love her. NBC is scared of her, and they are scared of this revolution. They are so scared of her… the girl who made the video above… that they hired her. They are using her to recruit people like her into an online network, which is a bit scary (big media companies will try to corportize this movement… but I don’t think they will be able to).

It’s all a question of supply and demand. There is enormous demand out there for entertainment… and because Brookers offers a particular, and fairly unpredictable form of entertainment that people want… en masse, she has become very popular. Cable TV stations wish they had as many loyal subscribers as Brookers had… and they wish they had the viral buzz that Brookers has.

This will be big. Companies, large and small who ignore this… who do not pay attention to it, who do not explore it, will miss opportunities at best, and will jeopardize their long-term survival at worst.

Have thoughts? Please comment!

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