The Podcasting Business Model - Reporters Must Dig Deeper
The last few days has seen quite a bit of discussion stem from the NY Times article talking about the coming of Odeo and the fledgling podcasting business. Though most are willing to half-reserve judgment, the other half are quite happy to cast the heavy-handed shadow of doubt on the quick-moving medium.
Today, Scott Kirsner has written a piece on the “growing pains” of the podcasting business. Here’s a quote from the article:
One problem is that, much like the Web before advertising and e-commerce, there's no money in podcasting yet. I doubt we would have seen Google, eBay, CNN.com, or Mapquest emerge if the Web had remained a commerce-free zone. Ads and transactions on the Web gave everyone an incentive to produce high-quality websites, from start-ups like eBay to giant media corporations like CNN to individuals like Harry Knowles, who runs the movie insiders' site Ain't It Cool News.And some of the founding fathers of podcasting — just like early Webbies — want to keep commercialism out.
[…]
When I suggested to Winer that podcasting might be supported by ads, like commercial radio, or sponsorship, like public radio, or subscription, like satellite radio, he had a quick comeback. ”The assumption is this must be exactly like every other medium that has come before,” he says. ”It’s different. It has different economics.”
There are a few problems with the argument being made here. First and foremost, podcasting is too much in its infancy to really be having growing pains at all. What we do have, with little shortage mind you, is a burgeoning class of entrepreneurs and media pioneers all searching for the leverage they seek and need from Podcasting.
Second, any expectation that the podcasting “business” would not come to mimic the traditional media is just foolish. There’s a huge infrastructure in place that supports that model and despite its shortcomings, many people still believe it to be efficient and effective. I think podcasting presents us with many different opportunities that are yet to emerge, but the old and tried ways still dominate regardless of how much we like or dislike them. Dave Winer not wanting it to go commercial has nothing to do with it (though I have no doubt Dave also expects this to happen).
Third, when will these reporters stop talking to the wrong people. I’m amazed more and more that they continue to ask the same questions of the same people and somehow expect different answers (isn’t that called insanity). What most people seem to overlook is that innovation and invention happens at the edges. While the top shows serve as inspiration and a benchmark, usually, it’s someone tinkering at their computer that’s going to figure out the “next big thing”. If you want to know where the business model is - ASK THE BUSINESS PEOPLE!
Podcasting is filled with interesting people doing interesting things - don’t condemn the thing before you’ve done your homework.
P.S. For any reporter that actually wants to talk to someone with a podcasting business model that’s starting to make money, feel free to check out Beercasting.com or contact me at greg AT beercasting.com.