Apparently, in the spirit of the "We" Era Renaissance, Josh Cohen of Google is seeking ideas on how to help Google can work with publishers to change the game.
Tom Foremski recommends a virtual currency.
We agree with Tom because we believe an economic solution is needed to change the game. But, to truly change the game, GOOGLE should capitalize on technology to solve the core problem in the media/marketing industry and truly add new value to people's lives. Here's why:
Josh,
I agree with Tom that a virtual currency is the catalyst to change the game.
Although there are many reasons for news and media business problems, the bottomline is economic. So an economic innovation is a good place to start.
To innovate, a virtual currency should add a second dimension to market value. Since the internet is a 2 way communication medium, it makes it possible to credit contribution and debit consumption. I've brainstormed about this here: http://bit.ly/FqrZP
Furthermore by relating the value of contribution credits to consumption debits, this new virtual currency would truly revolutionize the media/marketing industry by solving its core economic problem. The media/marketing industry has avoided the challenge of placing a value on and marketing "ideas" directly to consumers. Instead, it has thrived by selling the derivative value of "ideas": the value of the eyeballs attracted to advertisers, or, the value of access to "ideas" to consumers. I've discussed this here: http://bit.ly/5ope8R
Finally, the timing is right to change the way we think about technology. It has been used to cut costs, primarily. It is time to start applying technology to create new value for people's lives and grow consumption: http://bit.ly/8nN7h7
Will this create new problems and issues to deal with? Yes. But every time a problem is solved, it creates new value, the economy grows instead of shrinks.
