Content is King

Hi there,

First off, apologies for disappearing off the radar- we've been busily putting the finishing touches to some great new client podcasts- but more on that next week.

Today I just want to briefly evangelise about content. In the online world, content generators like me often have something of a crisis of confidence: do people really want all this stuff we produce? Advertisers worry about it too: if people aren't listening and watching, where will the brand exposure come from?

That's why I was pleased to see this in today's Daily Telegraph, written by one of our most respected business journalists, Damian Reece. Talking about the ongoing spat between Virgin Media and Sky (and commenting on the effect this has had on Virgin Media's subscriber numbers), Reece says:

"Virgin will never beat Sky until it reaches deep into its pockets and spends some really big bucks on must-have content. That's what really differentiates Sky from Virgin in consumers' minds and what gives Sky the upper hand in all negotiations between the pair."

Now, I'm not Sky, (and you don't have to spend really big bucks all the time) but this hits the nail on the head: companies all now have the opportunity to be content generators and content owners; and these intangible assets often represent tremendous real long-term value.