The web is a highway; I wanna ride it all night long

Ok I don’t mean literally but, I would like to know that I can access the internet for content, services and socializing, wherever, however and whenever I want. Doesn’t everyone? However, this reality is under threat from the growing relationship between Content and Service Providers in the form of a discussion called Net Neutrality.

Net neutrality is a topic which I don't think is really going to go away and is something that almost everyone has an opinion on. Although, I don’t believe these views are really addressing the core problem. What I mean by that is, they are focused on demand for high capacity content exceeding the network’s monetary ability to supply along with its inability to dynamically scale to match the unpredictable nature of content. What we really need is a new approach, one which protects the customer experience in how they can access the internet both from usability, cost and prioritization, but doesn't get in the way of the education, commercial value and social aspects of the web.

Just recently I read again that video is dominating the web, but what is interesting is video downloads are still not used by everyone. Despite these downloads growing in demand, there are always different profile requirements. People could simply want to read the news, access their online services such as banking, government services or simply communicate with friends. However, with high demand services in the form of online video, gaming and content sharing growing this can place high strains on networks. Now, currently the content owners are happy as they have the ability to monetize their services either through direct payment or subsidized through advertising. You could of course ask the question why now is this a problem? The likes of Google, Microsoft and even Baidu, have been around for a long time. Yes, but it is the acceleration of demand, for high volume video content, that has changed the game and what is elevating the topic of who should have access to the multiple highways making up the web and ultimately who should pay for it?

Network providers would argue that everyone needs to pay for their content. Naturally, one would think, that it is a lot easier for an established player to pay an access fee on networks to reach their customers as compared with startup firms. As expected with startups, every dollar that leaves the company can detract from a dollar invested in their new solution or offering they have created, thus creating a canyon sized gap between the big players and those introducing new concepts and innovations. As you can assess, this then is not a viable option for the ongoing evolution of the web.

The OTT (Over The Top) players would say well let's open the network and force operators to treat all content equally. This of course would leave the operators in a dilemma of trying to balance the scale of required support for the volume of traffic, the costs for managing that network combined with the prices that customers are willing to pay. The OTT option is simply not viable. Either operators would eventually be run into the ground or be faced with expensive customer service costs as best effort becomes synonymous with not good enough.

I would therefore like to propose a third option. Associate price based upon the load on the network. We could do it the same way that many major European roads fees are, paid by drivers, based on the weight of their vehicles. By doing so, we will encourage the right behaviour, as they will all understand that I am getting what I am paying for. If a customer wants to watch something in real time, whether that is video or gaming, they either pay an incremental fee or the content owner allocates parts of its revenues to the operator carrying that traffic. This will encourage content providers to think with operators in solving the problems regarding how they can optimize traffic, avoid expensive replication of Internet live streams and ultimately think through the problem leveraging the creative force of the OTT community. Of course someone will say, there is already a mechanism to pay more when you want to download more, isn’t it as simple as paying a higher price for buying a faster broadband connection? This may be true when it comes to the local connection piece of the equation however, remember this is a mesh of highways and it is those who are pulling down the large files that can clog these highways. I believe we need to provide users with a choice, three choices actually. One, pick the slower lane and you will receive your file when it is ready (paying lower costs), or two, if you simply must have it now, pay for it be downloaded faster (pay higher costs). The third option is to have your content provider subsidize you for the download (costs vary). In the end we will all need to work out a model which protects the user experience whilst not inhibiting the access and personal choice on how to download content. This does not mean that network providers are let off the hook, network providers must be held accountable for the quality of the user experience to whomever is the paying party to ensure they are equally held accountable in driving innovation to improve the network experience for each customer, as well as maintaining healthy diversity in how we access content to ensure competition and therefore choice.

We need to remember that the Internet has become a utility. It is one of our most important commodities and it requires, OTT players and network providers alike, to figure out how we can not only continue to ensure its survival, but also leverage it as a source of innovation and service creation. It is an innovation and resource that everyone can and should benefit from. Bottom line is it shouldn't matter whether you want to read a newspaper, watch a live football game or socialize content with friends. For all of us, the web has become the all important highway for information, collaboration and fun. The web is a highway and well, if you are like me, then you’ll want to continue to ride it all night long too!

The Power of one ... It's all about me!

There is an amazing transition of who is defining the internet user experience. The significant influence that content owners, use to have, is now moving towards the average person/user. Everyone is beginning to recognize that they can now choose their own content and services, and with this development, there are implications for an industry you might not have thought of at first– Advertising.
In the past, advertisers love(d) content owners. When there were only a few of them (relatively), they had the unique opportunity to define what content would be viewed by an end user.  Think of the influence they could wield, their ability to track patterns of interest and through the grouping of similar customers be able to create user profiles.  Like any enterprising group of businesses, the content owners would then, in turn, share this incredible insight with advertisers to help the advertisers create relevant ads for specific groups.
Okay, now move to today, where we have an incredible 3- 4 billion web pages of content for people to access either through websites or other platforms … that is roughly 1 unique content source for every two people on earth (this is compared with some 3.5 million web pages that were active just 15 years ago!). Based upon this development, it is increasingly difficult for the content owner to create profiles which are accurate.  Think about it… How in the world could you create a unique profile, of every person, based on the unique combination of content they may each choose to access, let alone adapt that profile based on their mood, time of day and location in the world for each individual website?
In walks the Over the Top (OTT) player who is able to provide us with a new approach.  This new model monitors all webpage’s, applications and media, through cookies and operating system tools. The content providers and advertisers have had to adapt to the OTT’s and ensure they had the right arrangements in place to promote their online content or their relevant ads. Naturally this is a situation which neither the content owners, nor the advertisers, should be or are very satisfied with.
For this reason, it is no longer the content owners or the associated advertising providers who have the best visibility and analysis of the dynamic nature and changing profiles of each individual users given the enormous diversity of content to choose from. This ultimately means they have now become dependent on the OTT for data on customer profiles. Meanwhile, it is the OTT’s that have been increasingly dominating the ad space purely through volume of end users they have visibility of.  There haven’t been any alternatives or any noticeable limitations on what OTT’s could or couldn’t view. Until recently, OTT’s could capture all data, from all users, without any concerns on the public’s perception on where or how this data was being collected.  In essence OTT’s were the “All seeing eye”.
Despite the far reaching capabilities of OTT’s, there are now more regulations and increased savviness from internet users to block out cookies and ultimately decide what information they want to share about themselves.  This in turn, is making it harder for OTT’s to provide accurate profiling of end users, which leads to advertisers again looking for alternative means to present relevant ads to internet users. It is these changes which I refer to as the Power of One.  Me, you, all of us, now have the ability to decide how much data about ourselves we want to share (whether that is our location, our interests or even our friends).
Enter stage left, the one remaining group who should be building relationships with advertisers, and until now, have not been fully leveraged– Internet providers. What if you could sign up for ads that were relevant to you based on your interests, location and time of day, without worrying about someone gathering all of your personal data? Ok … I hear you saying I don't like ads, I understand and agree with that but, they are a fact of life, so let’s use the “Power of One” to see ads we want to see rather than ads they get the best deals for.  Signing up through your internet provider, whether at home, or in a café, or a shopping mall, to define your areas of interest can be mutually beneficial. We trust internet providers not to store all of our data through the internet, and know that they have a customer service model that if we see any ads that we don’t think is appropriate we can ask they can act on it, something which OTT’s tend to propose they only facilitate and therefore can’t be held accountable for.
There are some interesting companies out there like Adztream, Jiwire and Urban Airship who are seeking to help advertise firms - and businesses seeking to advertise directly. They understand how to help advertisers adapt their approach to reaching out to individuals, through various solutions which are targeted at the changing profile at any time on any day. It is important for advertisers to maximize the changing landscape and rebalance their focus of engagement.  Move from the content owners to those providing access to the internet, whether in the form of operators (fixed and mobile) or private wifi owners such as malls, campuses, hotels and sporting events.
These companies are the early adopters in introducing alternative models which drive more of a symbiotic relationship between the advertisers, internet providers and most importantly the end users. It is now up to the internet providers to look at how they can best leverage these platforms and start shifting the traditional source of advertising from those pushing ads based on the “all seeing eye”, to pulling relevant ads for the end users which they have chosen to see or are relevant based on where they are at that point of time. So now what? Well, to advertisers, I would say start looking at alternative avenues and platforms to introduce relevant ads that avoid the discussion around privacy. To Internet Providers – it doesn’t matter whether you are a ISP, Mobile Operator, coffee shop or university, your private network gives you an opportunity to look at engaging partners to create a positive user experience subsidized by end user relevant advertising. For all of us, as end users, the internet experience is no longer about what we are told it is, but more about what we want it to be and most importantly about how much data on ourselves we are willing to share.
We, as the Power of One, need to remind ourselves that we define our own experience and the market will continue to evolve to the point where we will see ads more customized to our specific situations at any given time or location versus what OTT’s think we should see. The Power of One is not only alive and well, it is now clearly having an influence on the internet industry and the advertising revolution.