Internet Is Changing Everything

Except for easy profits, the mantra of the late 90's seems to have been generally right after all: the Internet is changing everything. Examples:

• Newspaper readership is down

• Bloggers often beat traditional news outfits to stories and are allowed to say things that traditional reporters can't.

• BrainsAsaCheapCommodity - Raw smarts has been devalued, resulting in white-collar workers facing similar CheapLabor pressures to what blue-collar workers have been facing. It may even change the world economic balance as the US loses it's comparative advantage.

• Cheap Entertainment -- Entertainment media companies having a harder and harder time contending with piracy and competition from independent and willing content producers. Plenty of people create music, software, etc. for the sheer joy of it, and the Internet makes it easier to share that. People like attention and people like to create. You don't have to pay them for that. This makes it tough for for-profit entertainment, similar to Microsoft against OpenSourceSoftware.

• "White collar crimes" are becoming more international

• New kinds of crimes

• Provides terrorists communication without the need for physical meetings.

• More ways to goof off at work.

• Major headache for censorship-favoring countries

• Gave OpenSource software a big boost, changing the nature of the packaged software business.

• Gives smaller political groups more power, recruits, and speed.

• Niche products more readily found

• New social behavior and fads, such as "flash mobs"

• Profits are dead (see below)

---

There's a saying that started late during the dot-com boom, but is still generally true: you can't make a profit on the Internet. With a few exceptions that are tied to the "network effect", internet-centric companies have narrow profit margins, if any. The barriers to entry are so low and international such that breaking even is often considered GoodEnough in Web-land. Old oligopolies such as CBS and NY Times are probably in for some rough times. Big buildings, big desks, and big bonuses are a thing of the past. Become nimble or get eaten by the nimble. -t