Ken McCarthy: When worlds collide

Bio

Ken McCarthy organized and sponsored the first conference ever held on the subject of the commercial potential of the World Wide Web. His company Amacord Inc., formerly E-Media, was one of the first Internet-based businesses in the world.
In addition to working with small and mid-sized business clients since 1993, McCarthy was a consultant to NEC's Biglobe, the largest online service in Japan, from 1996 to 2001. His book The Internet Business Manual was the first book on web entrepreneurship published in that country. He is also credited by Hotwired magazine with being one of the people responsible for the development and popularization of the banner ad, one of the key underpinnings of commercial Internet publishing.
A graduate of Princeton University, McCarthy came to the Internet industry with a varied background which included technical consulting for two of New York's top investment banks, lecturing on educational psychology at MIT, Columbia, and NYU, and founding and operating a number of small businesses, including one that helped produce an Academy Award winning documentary.

January 04, 2006

When worlds collide

What happens when the worlds of TV and the Internet collide?

I don't know, but I think we're about to find out.

Yesterday - the first work day of 2006 - the major business newspapers exploded with feature stories on the unfolding drama...

From the Financial Times: "Demand Grows for 'on-demand' television

From the New York Times: "Provider of Movies on Cable Looks to PCs and Video Players"

From the Wall Street Journal: "Watching the Web on TV"

Equally as illuminating, CBS took out a full page, four color ad to trumpet the following...

"Brand New. Announcing a brand-new, content rich, broadcasting, narrowcasting,webcasting, publishing, production, syndication, interactive, out-of-home, away-from-home, in-home, world-class entertainment coporation. CBS corporation."

It's enough to make you dizzy.

The last time we had a buzz like this (1994), things were different:

1. There was massive institutional skepticism and ignorance about the Internet
2. Advertisers, publishers, TV networks, music companies and movie studios were fat, smug and happy
with the offline status quo
3. The world population of 'Internet-interested' folks totaled maybe a few hundred thousand and most of them were techies.

But here's the really big thing that made things different 12 years ago...

In 1994, no one had a clue how to monetize Internet traffic.

How exactly will people get their video in the months and years to come?

I recommend everyone interested in the answer to this question pay close attention to this year's Consumer Electronics Show which kicks off tomorrow.

Here's one way to follow it (on Internet video of course):

http://www.technologyevangelist.com/ce

January 04, 2006 in Internet insight | Permalink