Beyond Facebook: How Will Today's Students Use the Web of Tomorrow?
Erica and I made our way over to Gotham Media Venture's offices for a panel discussion on how the students of the future will use the Internet. The panelists included Ariel Aberg-Riger of Fourth Story Media (FSM), Jordan Goldman, CEO of Unigo, Kate Hillis, co-founder of Qwidget, James Rohrback, CEO of GulliverGo, and Michael Staton, CEO of Inigral. I recall leaning over to Erica and remarking, "These panelists are younger than us!" But as it often goes with new media, youth is an advantage and we were ready to listen as our peers talked about their new products, ideas and strategies for building brands and communities online.
One of the key points discussed was how to bring together online companies (who primarily sell a product) and sites that focus on user-generated content (UGC). Much like the five-year-old social network Facebook, that relies on UGC and participation, the trick is to figure out how to monetize that space.
The challenge, and perhaps opportunity, which Michael Staton noted, is to engage site visitors and charge for content. However, the key is not to sell content, but rather to sell a community's trust.
