Most Promising Media Business Model

The Most Promising Business Model

Before online media, newspapers and magazines used subscriptions and sales to make the majority of their money. Since the emergence of the digital age, when observing successful media enterprises, I have seen that many of them use advertising as their primary source of revenue. Advertising as we know it has even begun to evolve. Branded and sponsored content or native advertising has emerged as a controversial means to make a profit. I believe that this is most promising business plan for making economic gains.

There is no denying the economic feasibility of native advertising. BuzzFeed is an obvious example of a company which thrives largely in part to native advertising. “BuzzFeed’s content is often described as clickbait; driving extra clicks alone won't actually affect the bottom line. Instead, BuzzFeed charges clients set fees for creating custom content aimed at that client's customer base. Such has been the success of this so-called "native advertising" that it is fast becoming the business model of choice for the online news industry” (Gallagher). Stated by CNBC’s John Carney, enterprises such as Business Insider focus their efforts on generating traffic to capitalize on an ad-based business model. Business Insider has been criticized for using misleading headlines to boost the number of viewer’s to its articles. Business Insider has been criticized for questionable journalism practices but it manages to bring in 12 million new users per month. This feat does not go without merit (Carney).

Media keeps society as a whole informed, it holds government and businesses accountable (SXSW). Will media still serve this purpose, if it transitions to a business plan fueled by native advertising? I am worried and concerned for the integrity of the news we consume. I wonder if it’s not possible for big businesses to control the media we digest through native advertisement. How easy would it be for a company such as BP to pay major media outlets to run a story about cleaner oil technology, in place of their oil spill? This is an extreme example, but I believe this is why we should be cautious in terms of native advertising. I for one do not want my media to be controlled by big business.

I question how we balance