Tuesday, February 27, 2007
A little look to the future
Several weeks ago I paused to look back. Sometimes it can be as illuminating to look into the crystal ball and check out the future.
I recently ran into a story about a statement made by Arthur Sulzberger at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland. He suggested that the New York Times may only have an online edition within the next five to ten years.
So who is this Arthur Sulzberger? He is the chairman of the New York Times. He may know a little about what he is talking about. The Times recently merged its print and online news desks.
The Gannett Co., a major player in the news, information and communications field is also embracing the Internet. The company owns the innovative national newspaper USA Today and is moving strongly into the Internet age as it merges print and online news activities, too.
The young adults of today are growing up in a world dominated by the Internet. It is integral to business. It is the medium for gamers. It is indispensable in higher education.
Anyone coming out of school with a college degree these days has had to develop an intimate knowledge of the Internet. Many professors now regularly communicate with their students via the “system of tubes” as a U.S. Senator once described it. Essays are submitted via the Internet and grades are posted the same way. The most popular graduation gift given to college-bound seniors is a laptop.
As often as our young people are using the Internet, it is not surprising they are also using it as the resource of choice for their news. The news media has got to keep up. It will have to be willing to put its horses to pasture and fire up the new-fangled automobile and travel the information super highway.
I found Arthur Sulzberger’s comments to be eye-opening. Coming from the head of one of the most important newspapers in the western world, it gets your attention. The Times has a large and extremely sophisticated Website. You will note that parts of it are in a restricted to subscriber area called “Times Select.” You will see other major newspaper move in that direction.
Last year more people visited their Website than subscribed to their newspaper. It is a sign that the Internet as a source for news and information underscores the notion that we are indeed entering the Internet age.
Another comment that turned my head and helped lead me to write this column was a comment made on a podcast last week. On this podcast about technology and the Internet the subject of the future of the comic book came up. It was suggested that there will always be a place for the classic print comic for investment purposes. An old Superman comic from the 1950s will always commend top dollars.
But many of the new comics, that don’t have that heritage, will likely move completely online within the next couple of years. Their heritage will be as a digital file. Somehow that doesn’t sound nearly as romantic as a glossy-covered magazine in a shrink-wrap pack.
What do you think?
You can reach me at rpolk@chespub.com or my blog: http://webnotesonline.blogspot.com/
I recently ran into a story about a statement made by Arthur Sulzberger at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland. He suggested that the New York Times may only have an online edition within the next five to ten years.
So who is this Arthur Sulzberger? He is the chairman of the New York Times. He may know a little about what he is talking about. The Times recently merged its print and online news desks.
The Gannett Co., a major player in the news, information and communications field is also embracing the Internet. The company owns the innovative national newspaper USA Today and is moving strongly into the Internet age as it merges print and online news activities, too.
The young adults of today are growing up in a world dominated by the Internet. It is integral to business. It is the medium for gamers. It is indispensable in higher education.
Anyone coming out of school with a college degree these days has had to develop an intimate knowledge of the Internet. Many professors now regularly communicate with their students via the “system of tubes” as a U.S. Senator once described it. Essays are submitted via the Internet and grades are posted the same way. The most popular graduation gift given to college-bound seniors is a laptop.
As often as our young people are using the Internet, it is not surprising they are also using it as the resource of choice for their news. The news media has got to keep up. It will have to be willing to put its horses to pasture and fire up the new-fangled automobile and travel the information super highway.
I found Arthur Sulzberger’s comments to be eye-opening. Coming from the head of one of the most important newspapers in the western world, it gets your attention. The Times has a large and extremely sophisticated Website. You will note that parts of it are in a restricted to subscriber area called “Times Select.” You will see other major newspaper move in that direction.
Last year more people visited their Website than subscribed to their newspaper. It is a sign that the Internet as a source for news and information underscores the notion that we are indeed entering the Internet age.
Another comment that turned my head and helped lead me to write this column was a comment made on a podcast last week. On this podcast about technology and the Internet the subject of the future of the comic book came up. It was suggested that there will always be a place for the classic print comic for investment purposes. An old Superman comic from the 1950s will always commend top dollars.
But many of the new comics, that don’t have that heritage, will likely move completely online within the next couple of years. Their heritage will be as a digital file. Somehow that doesn’t sound nearly as romantic as a glossy-covered magazine in a shrink-wrap pack.
What do you think?
You can reach me at rpolk@chespub.com or my blog: http://webnotesonline.blogspot.com/
# posted by Richard Polk @ 11:21 AM 
