are you ready for a video revolution?

One million videos downloaded in 20 days is a staggering figure, probably enough to start a revolution that could change video content forever. Apple's move is going to kick-start a trend that has been bubbling for years. The content free-for-all is about to begin and everyone needs to be prepared.

What does it mean?

- All paid content should be for sale and available for download
- Free content should be available
- Advertisers should make their advertising available for download

This doesn't mean just getting your content on iTunes, but everywhere you can, not just on your website.

Broadcasters, producers, advertisers and their agencies need to get ready for the next wave of content distribution:

- New programming formats
- New sponsorship packages
- New ways to advertise
- New ways to get consumer interaction

The list goes on. The only thing that's certain is that the distribution mechanism for content has been blown apart. Just like they did for music, Apple has started another revolution.


is patagonia the model corporation?

The announcement that Patagonia had won a National Design Award seemed to make sense. It certainly fit the current zeitgeist concerning corporate responsibility, though this recognition is probably long overdue. Founded in 1973, the company has committed to incorporating environmental issues into its heart - from the causes it supports financially to the use of recycled materials in its product line and the financial commitment of donating 1% of annual profits to worthy environmental causes.

However, it's not just its pursuit of environmental causes that makes Patagonia so special. Companies can't exist without a culture, which is basically all about the attitude and relationship between the organization and its people. As Patagonia founder Yves Chouinard states in his new book, Let My People GO Surfing, Patagonia's culture is a little different than most.

"This kind of independent thinking applies to our management philosophy as well. In fact, our employees are so independent, we've been told by psychologists, that they would be considered unemployable in a typical company. We don't want drones who will simply follow directions. We want the kind of employees who will question the wisdom of something they regard as a bad decision but, once they buy into something, will work like demons to produce something of the highest possible quality, whether a shirt, a catalog, a store display, or a computer program. How you get these highly individualistic people to align and work for a common cause is the art of management at Patagonia.

Part of the key is strong communication. We have no private offices at our Ventura headquarters; everyone works in open rooms with no doors or separations. What we lose in "quiet thinking space" is more than made up for with better communication and an egalitarian atmosphere. Managers try to lead by example. We don't have special parking places; the best spots are reserved for fuel-efficient cars, no matter who owns them. Malinda and I pay for our own lunches in the cafeteria, so that we don't send a message that it's OK to take from the company. And we have an open-book policy; financial details are available with all employees to promote full transparency.

A familial company like ours runs on trust rather than authoritarian rule. Maybe a few people take advantage of our flextime and our "let my people go surfing" policy, but none of our best employees would want to work in a company that didn't have that trust. They understand that my M.B.A. style of management is as much a sign of my trust in them as my desire to be out of the office."

Patagonia needs to be a case study for all future business leaders, because not only does it make environmental responsibility front and center, it has also built a culture that empowers the individual. It motivates them through the passion of the outdoors and encourages them to seek play within their work. Too often, corporations ruin the potential of their best assets, their people, by turning them to dispassionate drones. At a time when innovation, creativity and sustainability are values that companies need to acquire to survive, Corporate America could learn a lot from Patagonia.



subversive, edgy magazine brand succeeds with music that shakes kids up

Vice Recordings is the music arm of the expanding media empire of Vice, which includes a magazine and film division. Vice is best known for its edgy hipster magazine that constantly pushes the envelopes of taste and style. However, it's their record label that in the last three years has been getting some considerable buzz. Vice has signed some of the more interesting acts in the music scene, including The Streets and more recently, Bloc Party, who've been building significant critical acclaim since the April release of their debut album, Silent Alarm. The album has sold over 120,000 units.

There is an interesting story behind how the record division got started, according to a writer at the Columbia Spectator, Columbia University's student newspaper.

"When in a meeting with Atlantic Records, the editors of Vice magazine simply happened to ask why Atlantic wasn't putting the Streets in the U.S., when the albums were on international divisions of Atlantic's parent company, Warner. The response was basically a line about how they only care about profit and how that album, despite being one of the best of that year, wouldn't move enough units to make it worthwhile. The head honchos at Atlantic then turned around, and in the grand tradition of put-your-money-where-your-mouth-is challenges, gave Vice a check to start an imprint on Atlantic and release the albums on their own."

These guys are truly passionate about their acts and throw everything they have into making them work. General Manager Adam Shore's take on where Vice sits in the music scene is an interesting one.

"I feel like there has been created, in the past two to three years, an indie-yuppie establishment. Bands like Death Cab for Cutie, Iron and Wine, the Arcade Fire, Broken Social Scene, they are great bands, really great bands, with great albums, great songs, high quality. And to me, it's just so $%#%% boring. It's like fancy-coffee-drinking, Volvo-riding music for kids. And kids should be listening to music that shakes them up more, makes them uncomfortable. I don't think we're ever going to sign an indie rock band. I want to sign stuff that is more immediate and shakes you up a bit."

There's another interview with Adam Shore here.

Vice is clearly a great example of a contemporary passion brand with a strong set of ideas and ideals that even the mighty Atlantic Records could not compete with or resist working with. It also illustrates that with industry consolidation, companies are just getting too big and there are opportunities in the cracks. Vice just happened to be the right brand at the right time ready to pick up the juicy morsels that were being neglected on Atlantic's table.



a product for you, made by you

The trend of creativity and customization has been discussed to death by everyone, including Influx. However, Neil Gershenfeld of MIT added a different twist to the story with his presentation at PopTech. Gershenfeld and his team have been working on the idea of personal fabrication and through trial and experiment have created a working personal fabrication laboratory for $20,000.


He was extremely surprised that hundreds of students wanted to join what he thought was a geeky class. Instead, he found people who really wanted to play a creative role in creating their own products. He traced the problem back to the Renaissance, where making things was pushed aside as a nonintellectual, and therefore unworthy pursuit.

In these labs, students could experiment and make their own things that in many cases served no real practical application other than self-expression.

This technology is so radical that it hints at a very different future for the relationship between corporations and consumers. Today, we are playing with the illusion of personalization. It's likely that in the next 10-20 years, personalized fabricators (decendents of laser printers) will produce things for us. Whether we chose to craft these products ourselves or to print out company versions will be entirely up to us. Some may be made in the home, others might be made for us at places like Kinko's. The scenario in which you could be picking up the jeans you designed this morning, this afternoon from Kinko's, suggests a substantial transformation of business practice.

Companies are very happy to give consumers the power to customize their brands, but when individuals have the power and technology to circumvent companies and make their own products, they aren't likely to remain so content.

There is potentially a midpoint here that doesn't rely on the personal fabricators; instead, Chinese manufacturers could allow consumers to tap into their production facilities to produce their own anything. Imagine an online superstore where you can chose any product category and order a customized version of it. There's no reason brands could not be involved in this store, allowing consumers to get exactly the right product to meet their needs, even toothpaste and washing powder.

A division of Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners, Influx is a strategic consulting group that integrates brands into culture. Using a combination of skill sets: Account planning, anthropology, trend forecasting and creativity, Influx helps create future pathways for brands. "To stay relevant to today's generation of consumers, brands must connect to the culture that surrounds them. It's a living, breathing universe that can make brands famous or irrelevant."

DISCLAIMER
Information in this report relies on sources including Trade Shows, Associations, News Releases, Government Reports and other public sources. Infomat can accept no responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of such information or for loss or damage caused by any use thereof.